Prompt communication saved lives in Sharjah fire

Mahmoud Muhsen, Staff Reporter

Prompt communication with the owner of the tower block in which a fire erupted in Al Nahda area contributed immensely to providing emergency accommodation to the affected residents in two hotels, one nearby and the other far away, Major General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, Commander-in-Chief of Sharjah Police, said.

An on-site operation room of several teams was immediately formed to follow up with the residents of the affected tower and the adjacent buildings, he said, adding that the tower residents were classified into families and singles and their personal data including names and flat numbers were taken. Six buses were allocated to transport the affected people where families were provided accommodation in the nearby hotel and the other residents in the distant one, he added.

Meals were also provided to the affected residents and Civil Defence and support services cadres in collaboration with the Emirates Red Crescent and the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority, he said, adding that the police distributed water and refreshments among all the residents of the affected tower block and the adjacent buildings.

Mohammed Al Saudi, a tenant, said he was living alone in an apartment and was outside a few minutes before the fire, adding that he returned to the tower at around 9pm. As soon as he entered the building, he smelled a strong gaseous odour. By the time he arrived in his apartment on the 38th floor, he saw flames coming from the lower floors. “I had to turn off the gas valve and get out of the apartment without thinking of taking any personal belongings other than my mobile phone and apartment key,” he added.

“Being alone, I started to help the residents of the tower exit, particularly as there were many children and elderly people. After I arrived at the entrance to the building coming from the 38th floor, I heard a woman crying for help and asking the police to rescue her daughter who was stuck in the apartment. Until the Civil Defence cadres arrived, I went with a neighbour to the said apartment in an attempt to bring the woman’s daughter but the door was closed from the outside and we heard the girl crying from inside. We had to break the door open to rescue the girl, as the apartment was full of gaseous odour. It was later found that the apartment was where the fire had erupted.

“From the very first moments of the fire, we did not hear the alarm bells in the tower, which made it difficult for me and other tenants to evacuate.  The fire hoses and fire-fighting equipment which were out of order did not help us fight the fire from the very beginning. By this time, the Civil Defence cadres arrived and started evacuating the residents and directly dealt with the fire after ensuring the tower was empty.”

Yasser Al Sayyed, an Egyptian resident, said the neighbours told him and his four family members that a fire erupted in the tower and that they need to evacuate immediately.

“So, we left all our personal belongings including identification papers and money and had to use the stairs in the emergency exits. It was very difficult to go through the stairs, which were more like stores for the residents of the tower, where some residents used them to put old furniture, carton boxes, carpets and children’s toys. Add to this, the slow movement of the elderly made it difficult for the other residents to evacuate the tower.

“After the fire was brought under control, I found it difficult to provide food to my family, particularly that my wife was pregnant. So, I had to go back to the apartment to try to bring money from my wallet. Although my apartment was on the opposite side of the burning facade of the building, the competent teams did not allow me to go there. I remained outside the hotel till the next morning to be able to enter my apartment but all my attempts were in vain and I became penniless and without any personal documents, awaiting for approval to go back to my apartment.”

Another resident from Morocco said she was living on the fourth floor and with the start of the first spark of the fire, “my friend and I went outside the tower.” She added that she knew nothing about her money, possessions and passport and that she tried to enter the tower block to take her mobile phone but could not. She did not know for how long she had to remain in the hotel because nobody told her when she could return to her apartment or if she could enter it.