Sharjah has got three mobile pumping stations - called Al Sadd - to clear roads of rainwater that cause traffic bottlenecks and inconvenience people.

Each station will be able to pull out about 2 million litres of water in an hour, sources said.

Speaking to Khaleej Times, Thabet Al Taraifi, director general of the Sharjah Municipality, said that the mobile pumping station is not just the first-of-its-kind in the UAE, but also in the entire Middle East and North Africa region. They are being introduced to face challenges posed by waterlogging during the rains on roundabouts, squares, internal as well as main roads, particularly in the industrial and commercial areas of the emirate. The mobile pumping machines are capable of sucking stagnant water in a very short time and clear the road for traffic.

Taraifi said that the inauguration of the Al Sadd pumping stations represents a qualitative leap aimed at consolidating Sharjah's position on the world map among the most ready-made cities. Al Sadd has the ability to deal quickly with crises, disasters and emergencies caused by natural disasters and unusual weather conditions such as floods or heavy rainfall, he pointed out.

These stations would ensure the highest levels of safety for community members and public as well as private property, Al Taraifi underlined.

He said the Al Sadd plant has been modified according to the requirements and technical specifications that are suitable for the use of the municipality and the geographic nature of the emirate of Sharjah. "It's manufactured in the US," he added.

Taraifi revealed that the municipality has developed a plan to increase the number of mobile pumping stations for use in different areas in Sharjah, especially in the coastal and eastern areas, which have witnessed frequent floods during the past years.

Hassan al-Tafaq, director of environment department at the Sharjah Municipality, said that the pumping station is sort of a modified truck that's equipped with a quick flow pump so that the truck can be driven directly to areas affected by floods and water pools in areas where the water level reaches 1.5 meters.

The structure of the truck will not be damaged by water because it is coated with a special type of paint that is water-resistant and can withstand difficult climatic conditions, he added.

He pointed out that every 'mobile pumping station' contains three suction points to collect large amount of water in the shortest possible time, in addition to the multiple collection holes to withdraw flood water from the affected areas and control conditions as soon as possible. He added that the new pump also contains four discharge points for disposal of water collected in the temporary collection ponds or directly discharged into the sea. Equipped with sound-proof and fire-resistant technology, it has special LED and cluster lamps along with high-resolution cameras.

He stressed that the capacity of this type of pumps is five times more than the water pumps being currently used. The municipality has developed a plan to replace the existing pumps stationed in areas - such as Airport Road, Sharjah Ring Road, and Sheikh Khalifa Road - with the mobile pumping stations.

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