Dubai Police have warned of the dangers of transporting gas cylinders in vehicles used to transport individuals and in unlicensed vehicles with no signboards, as this poses a serious danger to road users and may cause a humanitarian disaster in case the vehicle is involved in any traffic accident.

Brigadier Ali Salem Al Shamsi, Director of Suspects and Criminal Phenomena Department at Dubai Police’s General Department of Criminal Investigation, said the department’s security teams seized a passenger bus loaded with unlicensed gas cylinders in the emirate.

The seizure of the passenger bus came as part of the efforts exerted by Dubai Police and their partners to detect street vendors for violating public safety requirements, eliminate all negative aspects in the emirate and ensure the highest levels of security and safety for members of the society, he added.

Al Shamsi stressed the necessity of abiding by the law and the gas cylinder transportation and distribution conditions in line with the approved regulations and safety requirements.

A gas cylinder transportation vehicle must have a custom colour and an open roof and must carry warning signboards alerting road users that it contains dangerous flammable materials, he said, adding that the vehicle must be provided with a fire-extinguisher cylinder that should be maintained regularly.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Talib Mohammed Al Amiri, Head of the Anti-Street Vendors Section at Suspects and Criminal Phenomena Department, called on the public to buy cylinders only from approved and licensed entities and to inform the competent authorities immediately when they see street vendors selling gas cylinders that do not meet the relevant standards and specifications.