Global Courant 2023-04-16 14:47:20
Dubai, United Arab Emirates — A fire swept through an apartment building in an older neighborhood of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, killing at least 16 people and injuring another nine, authorities said on Sunday.
Saturday’s fire in the Al Murar district of Dubai’s historic Deira district hit an apartment believed to be shared by several people, a common practice for workers who power the economy in this city-state more known for its towering skyscrapers. But the tight spaces, often divided by makeshift plywood, drywall, or shower curtain barriers, can pose a major risk in a fire.
A Dubai Civil Defense statement issued by the city-state’s Dubai Media Office indicated the death toll. Authorities have not answered questions from The Associated Press.
On Sunday, charcoal marks could be seen on the five-story apartment building, which also housed a grocery store, smoke shop and other businesses on the ground floor. Yellow police tape from the crime scene cordoned off the building, which was still heavily policed. Huge Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s from the long-haul airline Emirates roar overhead as the neighborhood is just 3 kilometers (2 miles) from Dubai International Airport along the flight path.
Several neighboring balconies hung the clothes from a wardrobe – a common practice when wardrobes are converted into living quarters for workers sharing an apartment originally designed for a single family. You see that all over Deira, which lies along the Dubai Creek and is also home to the gold and spice markets, a major tourist attraction in the city.
A man who was working in the area at the time of the fire started the fire shortly after noon on Saturday afternoon. He told the AP there had been an explosion, as if a gas cylinder caught fire, followed by thick black smoke. He said neighbors thought people were sleeping indoors at the time, typical of the holy Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, when the faithful abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset.
A Dubai police officer stopped the AP journalist from speaking to the man before giving his name and telling the reporter to leave the area.
According to the Dubai Civil Defense statement, the fire started on the fourth floor. The charcoal traces could be seen on the fifth floor, where the glass appeared to have been blown out by the fire.
“Preliminary investigations have shown that failure to comply with the building’s security and safety requirements caused the fire,” the statement said. “Relevant authorities are conducting a comprehensive investigation to provide a detailed report on the causes of the” fire.
The statement went no further. The building’s management declined to answer questions when the AP reached out, citing the ongoing police investigation. It was not immediately clear who owned the building.
Dubai has experienced a spate of high-rise fires in recent years, fueled by flammable siding material. However, other fires in warehouses and smaller buildings can strike, especially in the summer when temperatures rise above 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit). On Saturday, Dubai saw a maximum of 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit) with high winds.
Illegal segregation of apartments has been a problem in Dubai for decades, made worse when the city-state sees real estate booms and economic growth like it is experiencing today. Authorities have cracked down in the past, but landlords persist in offering partitioned apartments as workers from Africa and Asia try to save every penny to send home.
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Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
