Emirati boy dies after car driven by 13-year-old flips

Driver is in intensive care – third child, aged 11, was also injured

Two Emirati boys, a driver and a passenger, died as a result of a road accident in Ras AlKhaimah on Thursday, October 29. Courtesy: Ras Al Khaimah Police

An Emirati boy aged 12 died and two others were injured after a car, driven by an unlicensed teenager, flipped in Ras Al Khaimah.

The victim was one of three children in the SUV, including the 13-year-old driver.

They were travelling down an unpaved and unlit road in Al Ghail at 8.30pm on Thursday when the boy lost control of the vehicle and crashed. The force of the collision caused the car to flip on to its side.

Brig Mohammad Al Humaidi, director general of Central Operations at Ras Al Khaimah Police, said the boy aged 12 died instantly while the second passenger, 11, was only slightly hurt.

The driver suffered severe injuries, Brig Al Humaidi said.

“Police patrols and the national ambulance immediately rushed to the site of the accident and it became clear that the vehicle that was driven by one of the three Emirati boys had deteriorated after suddenly veering from its lane,” he said.

The boys were taken to Al Dhaid Hospital in Sharjah.

Brig Al Humaidi said the driver was admitted to the intensive care unit while the younger passenger was discharged after treatment.

The dead boy’s body was handed to his family for burial.

Brig Al Humaidi urged parents to monitor their children and not let them drive until they are adults and have obtained a driving licence.

“Driving a vehicle without obtaining a licence is an explicit violation of traffic rules and regulations and exposes the violators to legal accountability,” he said.

The legal driving age in the UAE is 18.