VIDEO: Dubai Police reveal the reason behind Expo 2020 site fire
A general view of the Dubai Expo 2020 site.
The fire impact examination experts at the General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology in cooperation with the General Department of Criminal Investigations at Dubai Police succeeded in re-simulating circumstances of a fire that erupted in a building under construction at Expo 2020 site with complete accuracy.
They were able to reveal the main reason behind the fire, and to disclose the fact that was concealed by a worker and an engineer of a company operating on the site to evade responsibility.
The experts after conducting 12 experiments, succeeded to find out the reason of the fire. It was because of a sudden failure in the welding operations at the ends of two pipes installed in the building, due to the high temperature of the coil wire. This led the wire to stick to the pipe and then its impact extended to the inner path of pipe resulting in the fire, the experts added.
“The welding operations led to a rise in the temperature of the pipe to more than 350ºC, which caused an internal ignition on the day of the accident.
And this is contrary to the claim of a worker and an engineer working for a company operating on the site, who confirmed there were no works in the building at the time of the fire,” the experts said.
Based on the results reached by the fire experts, the CID teams probed the incident. They found out that the welding worker in the company executing the project was carrying out his regular work tasks on a daily basis at the work site. He was carrying out welding operations to connect two pipes, but a technical error occurred, so he stopped the operation, and re-stored the equipment in the room designated for that, without observing the safety procedures required in this situation, the CID team added
It was also found that the worker then went to the bathroom, and within 5 minutes, he noticed that there was a complete evacuation of workers at the site due to eruption of a fire. He left the place immediately and informed the engineer in charge about the technical error, which happened to him. The engineer asked him not to inform anyone about that error, as there was no witness to the welding process, and no need to involve himself and the company in the fire.
Furthermore, the search and investigation revealed the messages sent to the workers of the company urging them to “claim that they did not work at the site of the accident at the time of the fire” which is contrary to the truth.
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The Dubai Police re-simulated the incident with high accuracy and professionalism after the results of the investigation were shown. The worker and the engineer also admitted that welding operations were carried out on the day of the fire and they tried to conceal the truth.
Lieutenant General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, commended the exceptional efforts of experts examining the effects of fires in the General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology, who conducted accurate and professional scientific experiments to find out the true cause of the fire.
He also praised the great cooperation and coordination between the fire impacts examination experts and the CID teams, who continued research and investigation until they managed to uncover the truth.
In the meantime, Reem Bint Ibrahim Al Hashemi, Minister of State for International Cooperation Affairs, Director General of the Expo Dubai 2020 Office, praised the great efforts made by the Dubai Police, stressing that the professionalism and accuracy shown by the work teams reflect the outstanding capabilities they possess, and the great development of the Dubai Police’s work system at all levels.
She said, “I extend my sincere thanks to all members of the Dubai Police, notably General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, for their dedication and continuous support and for their unparalleled efforts in preserving the safety and security of all, as well as protecting lives and property at Expo 2020 in particular, and the whole Dubai in general.”
