UAE | General
Residents take big risk to save a few dirhams
Despite the current 25 per cent drop in the price of cooking gas in Ras Al Khaimah, residents are still travelling in private cars to Oman with empty cylinders for cheaper options.
- By Nasouh Nazzal, Staff Reporter
- Published: 22:53 August 14, 2009
Ras Al Khaimah: Despite the current 25 per cent drop in the price of cooking gas in Ras Al Khaimah, residents are still travelling in private cars to Oman with empty cylinders for cheaper options.
Ras Al Khaimah authorities have seriously warned people against this practice, highlighting the dangers of carrying loaded gas cylinders in cars, describing it as a bomb.
Authorities said that if a car carrying a gas cylinder is subject to even a minor road accident it could easily explode and cost many lives.
A senior officer at the Civil Defence Department said that such practices should be stopped as transporting gas cylinders in private cars is banned.
Some residents says they are not satisfied with the gas dealers in the Emirates, complaining that some of them have their cylinders refilled in Oman. Under any circumstances, the officer stressed, transporting cylinders in cars is dangerous and it should be stopped immediately.
The price of cooking gas in Oman and Abu Dhabi is about 25 per cent cheaper than the lowest price in Ras Al Khaimah.
Many residents work in Abu Dhabi and they transport spare gas cylinders in their private cars to change them there at cheaper prices.
At times these cylinders lie in the trunks of their vehicles for weeks exposed to the heat as they do not return home from work daily. The official warned that heat or accidents can cause explosions.
The officers said that only the gas distribution vehicles which are provided with all the necessary safety measures are allowed to carry the gas cylinders, adding that the authorities check on these vehicles and unless they meet all the required conditions they will not be licensed for this purpose.
Authorities have discussed this issue and they said that they will come down hard on offenders. They will face tough penalties, he said.
A senior official at the Department of Economic Development said that the issue has been made the department's top priority. he said prices have been reduced from Dh100 last year to Dh75 currently.
He explained that a regular monthly meeting has been organised with gas filling companies and a monthly price list is issued and distributed to dealers.
The official stressed that many people search for cheaper options in the market, adding that people have also been carrying water containers in their cars to get them filled at desalination plants.
He said that sealed water was being sold in the supermarkets and groceries for Dh6 but many people carry empty water containers in their cars which they fill from the plant at the cost of Dh2. The official said that many people in the emirate are involved in these pratices believing that this will help them cut costs, but what they don't realise is that they are putting their lives and those of others in danger by engaging in these activities.
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