Dubai High-Rise Fire: 34 Floors Safely Evacuated
A Dubai high-rise fire caused the evacuation of the 34-story residential tower on Sunday. Rescue crews were able to put out the fire, which gutted portions of the building, according to police.
The fire took place in a building of Jumeirah Lakes Towers, which is a cluster of high-rise apartment buildings and shops located on the southern edge of the United Arab Emirates city, reports ABC News.
Black smoke wafted over the towers as the blaze charred the outside of the building. Police stated that rescue crews were able to safely evacuate the high rise and bring the fire under control with no casualties reported.
Residents of the high rise flooded the streets of Dubai as they evacuated the apartments. Some wore pajamas while others clutched passports and other belongings.
They stood on roadways and watched while flames poured from windows on the higher floors. They also witnesses pieces of fiery debris falling from the sides of the high-rise building.
Yahoo! News notes that the Dubai high-rise fire will likely help add to calls for greater fire safety in the United Arab Emirates city, where hundreds of thousands of residents live in high-rise buildings. They will also likely ask for better evacuation planning.
The fire at Jumeirah Lakes Towers is not the only in a high-rise tower. Hundreds of residents were evacuated from a 76-story tower in June after a fire began on the 36th floor. Another fire at a high-rise in Dubai broke out last November and crews struggled to put out the blaze because they lacked the equipment to reach the flames.
