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Santhosh Chandran & QNA
Doha
AS thick fog enveloped several areas of Qatar on Sunday morning and the Qatar Meteorology Department (QMD) forecast the spell to continue until Tuesday morning, the General Directorate of Traffic has issued an advisory to residents to drive cautiously owing to high probability of accidents caused by poor visibility.
Assistant Director of Traffic Awareness Department Major Jaber Mohamed Odaiba has stressed on the importance of the vehicles to be"qualified and in good shape, in terms of light signals, windows and tyres". He also urged commuters to follow signs on the way, and not change lanes, or exceed the specified speeds.
Besides, he advised motorists to use reflective triangle in case of breakdown of their vehicles and place the car away from traffic flow.
Major Odaiba also warned commuters against common errors made by drivers during foggy weather such as using the brakes frequently, changing lanes and using high beam headlights, which reduces the visibility further. He stressed on the importance of maintaining appropriate distance between two cars in order to avoid collision and keep the windows partially open to be able to hear the sounds of other vehicles.
Traffic Officer Fahad Abu Hindi urged motorists to stop their vehicles in case of zero visibility during heavy fog or sandstorms. He also called on drivers to use hazard lights only when required.
Moreover, commuters had a tough time navigating through the heavy fog that covered Doha city and its surrounding areas to reach their destinations on Sunday morning. Traffic was unusually slow, especially on the expressways and the Orbit Road the gateways for hundreds of trucks from Hamad Port.
Civil Defense personnel and traffic patrols had been deployed on expressways since Saturday night to navigate heavy truck movement. Many commuters on the Orbit Road were even directed to stop their vehicles at places where visibility was very poor.
Speaking to Qatar Tribune on Sunday, Head of Forecast and Analysis Department at Meteorology Department, Abdullah Mohammed al Mannai, said:"The fog will continue for the next two days, but its density will start declining from Wednesday onwards. The department has also informed the Ministry of Interior about the weather forecast as part of routine procedure."
Mannai also urged the fishermen community to follow the forecast update through the Meteorology Department's Facebook page and its website.
According to Mannai, the expected temperature during daytime and at night in January, are expected to hover around 23 degree Celsius and 14 degree Celsius, respectively.
A truck driver, who got stuck for hours in the thick fog on the Orbit Road while he was on his way to Hamad Port from Ras Laffan, said:"The police and Civil Defense personnel helped us greatly. We were even asked to halt our vehicles when the density of fog made mobility difficult."
However, for tourists, it was an exciting day. A large number of tourists and residents could be seen jogging at Doha Corniche."It was an entirely different experience watching Doha's skyline draped in a blanket of fog," said an expatriate.
