Enjoy the rain, don’t be anxious

A reader says people should enjoy when it rains. That way they can avoid much of the chaos and confusion. Other letter topics: cars, manufacturing, Bangladeshis, charity, plane crash.

A reader says people should be careful when venturing out when it rains. Mariam Al Nuaimi / The National

I am commenting on the news report Man drowned after car swept into wadi in Ras Al Khaimah (November 18).

Life in the UAE is fantastic as long as the weather is normal. For that matter, even the long summer seems to be more bearable than even a day of rain, which people seem to crave for.

When it rains, the condition of life seems to become miserable and many of those who look forward to a few drops of water from the sky feel extremely scared and anxious. In Ras Al Khaimah, as elsewhere in the country, rain brings more risk than respite. It is risky for the children even to go to school and it is dangerous for people who have to drive, or walk on the street.

In Ras Al Khaimah, water gushes in from all directions and floods the entire area when it rains. But people only need to be careful, not scared.

It’s sad that a young man has lost his life recently after his car was swept into a wadi by surging flood water after torrential rain.

However, I find it strange that heavy showers bring so much joy in my country, Pakistan. Sometimes it rains heavily for a week, flooding many areas. Yet, rarely do people die on the roads.

In monsoon, children play in the rain water that accumulates in low-lying areas and parents do no bother to keep them indoors. The place where I live is not very busy. It’s somewhat similar to the area where I live here.

But it becomes so different when it rains. Perhaps the situation becomes so bad because many people are not familiar with rain.

Abbas Naqvi, Ras Al Khaimah

UAE’s car-driven society needs a shift in gear

I am sad to learn that the cyclist Mehdi Karasane succumbed to his injuries (Abu Dhabi triathlete dies after being hit by car, November 20).

Cars dominated cities around the world between the 1970s and 1990s. These days, however, most governments are trying to encourage people to take public transport, as well as building safe pedestrian crossings, cycle paths and narrow roads. The UAE should do the same.

Name withheld by request

Region must focus on manufacturing

I am responding to the Facebook post In pictures: Furnish your Boeing 747 just the way you want it (November 19).

I think the Arab countries should develop their manufacturing sector so as not to pay so much money to European and American companies, because paying those companies means pumping in funds into their economies.

Mujahid Beeharry, Mauritius

Bangladeshis need due recognition

I'm writing about the article on an honest Bangladeshi driver who returned Dh88,500 to its owner after he found it in his taxi (Driver found Dh88,500 under a seat in his taxi November 20).

This is not first time that a taxi driver has done this. A couple of months ago, a Dubai taxi driver, who is also from Bangladesh, returned a staggering amount of money – nearly Dh1.2 million in cash and Dh1 million worth of gold and other valuable items – left by a passenger in his taxi.

I think the majority of Bangladeshi people working in the UAE are honest and hard working. Thank you Nure Alam.

Mohammed Anisur Rahman, Abu Dhabi

Charity groups deserve praise

I thank Dubai Cares and the UN Children's Fund (Bosnian children given earlier start, November 21).

They are doing a good job by giving good lives to children whose parents are not able to provide them the life and education they deserve. Hats off to these organisations.

Name withheld by request

Many questions over plane crash

I refer to the news report Russian plane crash kills 50 (November 18).

My question is, why do we need to wait for flight recorders to get an idea of what happened when the crew were in live communication with the control tower before the crash.

If there was a problem with the landing gear, as journalist Lenara Kashafutdinova had noticed, and which has been reported elsewhere, then why not say so? In such cases public safety should get priority.

Also, who cleared the plane to fly after reports, on the same day, of a serious malfunction: “In Moscow the weather was fine ... We were blown in different directions, the plane was tossed around. The man sitting next to me was white as a sheet.”

G Kafantaris, US