Naifa Balkies Hameed, a 21-year-old Indian student, died after a speeding car hit her on Al Khawaneej Street in Dubai. She got a flat tyre and stood outside her vehicle seeking help. Police said the driver got arrested. Her family remembered her as a special child who loved everyone dearly.
Abu Dhabi:
A 21-year-old Indian student was killed in a road accident in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after experiencing a flat tyre. Naifa Balkies Hameed, a final-year architecture student at Canadian University Dubai, was standing outside her car, seeking roadside assistance, when a speeding vehicle struck her on Al Khawaneej Street.
Moments before the accident, Hameed was on a call with her father, who was in India for a family function, to tell him about the flat tyre while she was on her way to university. Her father, Binu Hameed, advised her to call roadside assistance, send her car to a workshop and get a taxi to college, according to a Gulf News report.
Talking to the publication, Hameed's uncle said that about five minutes later, her father called her again, but there was no answer.
The family later received a call from Dubai Police informing them about the accident. Police reportedly informed the family that Hameed was standing behind her car when she was run over by the speeding car and died on the spot.
The family said they have been told that the driver of the speeding vehicle has been arrested and a probe is underway in the case.
Recently Visited India
According to her uncle, Hameed, along with her family, recently travelled to Kerala for a wedding. But while her father, brother and sister-in-law stayed behind for wedding festivities, Hameed, along with her mother Seema, returned to Dubai so that she could attend her classes.
Her uncle said the Hameed family, a native of Thodupuzha in Kerala, had moved to Dubai to support their daughter's higher education. Binu, a businessman, had earlier travelled frequently between Saudi Arabia, Dubai and India before they settled in the emirate.
Hameed's family described her as a "special child" who was extremely close to every member. "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," her uncle told Gulf News.
He said the Hameed had been driving since the age of 18 and was comfortable behind the wheel of different cars.
"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.