Car catches fire on Sheikh Zayed Bridge in Abu Dhabi

Smoke billows from Sheikh Zayed Bridge after a car catches fire. The National

A vehicle caught fire on Sheikh Zayed Bridge on Thursday causing heavy congestion.

Black smoke billowed from the bridge at around 1pm for roughly two minutes before tapering out.

Abu Dhabi Police tweeted that the accident took place in the direction of the capital city and the fire led to the closure of the two right lanes.

Police advised motorists to use alternative routes as heavy delays were expected.

No further details were released.

Earlier on Thursday, several pupils were taken to hospital following an accident involving four school buses on Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street.

The accident happened at around 7am at the turn-off for Mussaffah and was cleared by police almost 50 minutes later.

The general manager of Velocity School Bus Transportation, which operates one of the buses involved in the accident, said five children were taken to hospital after complaining of pain and "uneasiness".

None were seriously injured, Balakrishna Gopinath said.