Indian expat student in Dubai run over and killed soon after reporting flat tyre

Dubai: It began as a routine phone call about a flat tyre. Minutes later, an Indian expat family’s world had been turned upside down.

Naifa Balkies Hameed, a 21-year-old architecture student at Canadian University Dubai, called her father to say her car's tyre had gone flat while she was on her way to university, her uncle told Gulf News on Monday. It was one of the last conversations she had with her family.

Days after her death in Al Rashidiya area, her relatives are speaking about what happened, in the hope that their loss will make other motorists think twice about the dangers of a breakdown on a busy road.

According to her uncle, the accident took place on Thursday afternoon, He said Naifa's father, Binu Hameed, told her to call roadside assistance. He said that once the recovery vehicle had towed her car away, she could take a taxi to university.

About five minutes later, Binu called her again. There was no answer.

The family later received a call from Dubai Police about the accident. The uncle said that, according to what police told the family, Naifa was standing behind her car on Al Khawaneej Street when a speeding vehicle hit her.

She was run over by the speeding car and reportedly died at the scene.

The family was told the driver of the vehicle had been arrested. Gulf News has reached out to Dubai Police and is awaiting their comments.

Naifa was in Dubai because she did not want to miss her classes, the uncle said. The family had travelled to Kerala for a wedding. While most of them stayed on for another family function, Naifa flew back with her mother, Seena, so that she could attend her classes. Naifa’s father, her brother, his wife and the uncle remained in Kerala.

The uncle said Naifa’s family had moved to Dubai to support her higher education. Binu, a businessman, had earlier travelled frequently between Saudi Arabia, Dubai and India before they settled in the emirate.

Naifa, a native of Thodupuzha in Kerala, was in the final year of her architecture degree.

Her uncle described Naifa as a very special child who was extremely close to everyone in the family.

“She remembered the birthdays and wedding anniversaries of everyone and made a point of sending cards and gifts. She was friendly with everyone, especially young children,” he recalled.

He described her as the light of the household. The family, he said, is devastated by her sudden death.

Naifa had been driving since the age of 18 and was comfortable behind the wheel of different cars, he said.

“Her father is a car enthusiast, and the family owns several vehicles. On the day of the accident, she was driving her brother's car, which had not been used for several days because he was in Kerala,” he said.

The family members in Kerala returned to Dubai on Friday morning. Once the documentation and repatriation formalities were completed, the family took Naifa's mortal remains back home on Saturday night.

Earlier on Saturday, friends and relatives gathered at the embalming centre in Dubai to pay their final respects. Naifa was laid to rest at a mosque in her hometown in Kerala on Sunday.

The family hopes Naifa's death will serve as an eye-opener for motorists and other road users and encourage greater awareness and caution during roadside emergencies.