DOHA: Four Qataris died and two were left critically injured when the four-wheel powered car they were travelling in turned turtle during what seemed to have been dune-bashing in a Saudi desert not far from the Qatari border areas.
The accident took place in the Hurd desert area near the border city of Al Ahsa in eastern Saudi Arabia, Al Sharq reported yesterday, quoting a report on the online edition of London-based Al Hayat Arabic daily.
The car collided with a hillock in the desert. The daily didn’t say they were dune-bashing. Neither Al Sharq nor Al Hayat said when the accident took place.
However, a Saudi website Mshariq said the mishap took place on Sunday.
The injured and those dead were shifted to King Fahd Hospital in Al Ahsa, said the daily.
A number of Qataris travel to neighbouring Saudi Arabia in their cars, especially during festive occasions like Eid.
Some 17 people die in road accidents in Saudi Arabia every day and about 68,000 people get injured every year, causing financial losses of a whopping SAR13bn ($3.45bn), said the report.
From media reports it appears that the Qataris who died were part of a larger group of friends or members of some extended families. They were part of a convoy of four-wheel powered cars that were in the desert at the time. Their friends shifted all six to the hospital after the accident.
Meanwhile, reports of the Qataris dying in the car crash drew reactions from the Qatari community here on local social networking sites.
One commentator said he had seen a tweet in which the names of the four deceased figured.
It is clear from their last names that the four were members of an extended family. Another commentator said it was sad that of late they had begun hearing sad news about “group” deaths in tragic car crashes.
Still another said that one of the deceased was his colleague and that he was really saddened by the news. One commentator advised people to be very careful while driving in Saudi Arabia because, he claimed, traffic regulations in the country are not up to the mark and they are not enforced quite strictly.
“This is the reason why so many accidents take place in Saudi Arabia,” he said. “The risks of driving in Saudi Arabia are very high,” said yet another commentator. The Peninsula
