Dubai Marine Fire: Fire controlled after 6 hours; no casualties reported

New Delhi (India) June 15: In Dubai Marina, a large fire started in a 67-story apartment complex. Early on Saturday morning, teams from Dubai Civil Defence were able to put out the fire which had been burning for around six hours.

Firefighters, ambulances and medical personnel were among the emergency services that quickly reached the location. Because of their coordinated efforts, all 3,820 residents from 764 flats were successfully evacuated and no casualties were reported.

The DMO said: "Specialised teams successfully evacuated all residents from the 67-storey building, prioritising their health and safety throughout the operation. Efforts continue to fully contain the fire. Ambulance teams and medical staff are on site to offer full medical and mental support to the safely evacuated residents" in a statement regarding the fire accident.

According to the DMO, the authorities are putting the safety and wellbeing of the impacted residents first and are working closely with the building's developer to set up temporary housing for them.

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai also halted tram service between Palm Jumeirah Station (No. 9) and Dubai Marina Station (No. 5) after the incident. According to the authority, the action was done as a precaution to guarantee the security of both passengers and operating personnel.

RTA said, “The safety of our passengers and operations is our top priority. We are working closely with emergency services and relevant authorities to monitor the situation and resume full services as soon as it is deemed safe” in an official statement.

Authorities are keeping a close eye on the situation and will likely offer further information as investigations and recovery activities move forward. Although the fire has been successfully put out, officials have not yet revealed the cause, and further investigations are expected.

Many residents said that fire alarms did not notify them. Rather, they learnt about the fire from the smoke, friend calls or the sight of firefighters outside. Some residents are still waiting to hear about the state of their homes, while others were admitted to the hospital after inhaling smoke. 

There have been previous fire problems at the Marina Pinnacle tower. A fire that started in a kitchen on the 47th floor advanced one floor higher in May 2015 before firefighters were able to contain it. The tower is also close to The Torch, another building that was the scene of two distinct fires in 2015 and 2017. Authorities have confirmed that the most recent event did not result in any fatalities or injuries.

Aadrika Tayal