Wednesday, Nov 17, 2010
Gulf News
Public urged to avoid swimming in rough weather
Dubai As part of its drive to providing a safe environment and attractive beaches in the emirate, Dubai Municipality recently installed new signboards designed to create awareness among beachgoers at the public open beaches.
The public open beaches have witnessed a significant increase in the number of visitors since last month, especially during the weekends, engineer Alya Abdul Rahim Al Harmoudi, Head of Coastal Zone and Waterways Management Section in the Municipality, said.
She said Dubai beaches are expected to see heavy turnout during the Eid Al Adha holidays.
Al Harmoudi said that the Coastal Zone and Waterways Management Section has in the past month installed 50 new signboards with instructions and rules for the use of the beaches.
“These signboards have been designed in a distinctive umbrella-shaped style to suit the coastal environment and have been distributed in all the public beaches in the emirate, including Al Mamzar Creek Beach, the beaches of Jumeirah, Umm Suqeim, Al Sufouh, and Dubai Marina,” she said.
Swimming after sunset
Alya also called upon the public to avoid swimming after sunset or in bad weather conditions.
She also said it is important to stay away and not to swim near the breaking waves and rock barriers due to the strong currents near these areas.
“In many of the open beaches areas for swimming have been identified through floating buoys and ropes,” noted Alya, pointing out the importance of commitment to swimming only in these areas and not to exceed further. She added that visitors to the sea can properly plan their trips to the beach by visiting the Dubai Municipality website which is dedicated to monitoring the coastal zone.
The wesite, located at www.dubaicoast.ae, displays real-time data on the status of the sea and meteorology, as well as aerial snapshots.
Alya also called on beach visitors to be committed to the preservation of the coastal environment and not to leave garbage and food leftovers on the beaches as the Municipality has provided waste containers at all public beaches.
She also said that some practices banned are prohibited on public beaches in Dubai. These are made clear on the new signboards. They include barbecuing, smoking shisha, lighting open fires and overnight camping. It is also forbidden for beach patrons to bring their dogs and other animals.
Field monitoring
Alya said that these activities would pollute the coastal environment and may cause a disturbance to public.
Alya said that the Environment Department is working hard to provide necessary field monitoring for the public open beaches to prevent any violations that may harm the beach environment and disrupt the serene atmosphere.
She said the Municipality is keen to educate beachgoers on the violations and prohibited acts.
OLIVER CLARKE/Gulf News
Familiar rules get a new look
A beachgoer checks out the safety and regulations signs on Jumeriah beach. Dubai Municipality has recently installed signboards designed to create awareness among people at the public beaches.
These signboards have been designed in a distinctive umbrella-shaped style to suit the coastal environment and have been distributed in all the public beaches in the emirate.”
Alya Abdul Rahim Al Harmoudi
Head of Coastal Zone and Waterways Management Section
Staff Report
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