UAE says 14 killed, 30 injured in Fujairah traffic accident

What the report says

The United Arab Emirates said at least 14 people were killed and 30 others injured in a major traffic accident in Fujairah, according to a statement from the Interior Ministry reported by Al Jazeera. The crash happened shortly before midnight on Wednesday at the entrance to the emirate, and involved 18 cars and 5 trucks.

According to the ministry, the sequence began when a truck driver lost control and collided with another vehicle, sending both off the road and into a line of vehicles that had slowed or stopped in traffic. One truck then caught fire, and the flames spread to several other vehicles. Emergency and specialised teams were still responding to the scene as of Thursday.

Al Jazeera reported that the ministry said 15 injured people had been discharged from hospital, while 15 remained under care. Police said those killed included Emirati nationals and several foreigners, and DNA testing was under way to confirm identities. The injured were reported to include people from the UAE, Oman, India, Brazil, Pakistan, Jordan and Egypt.

The incident is significant because it caused multiple fatalities and injuries across several nationalities, and involved a large chain-reaction crash with fire on a busy route into Fujairah. More broadly, major highway accidents in the Gulf can trigger large emergency responses because of high traffic volumes and the presence of heavy vehicles.