ANOTHER FIRE IN DUBAI HIGH RISE RAISES SAFETY CONCERNS IN THE MEGA CITY

A massive fire in a Dubai high-rise on Monday, 7th November has put a question mark on the safety protocols and parameters in one of the most happening and technologically updated cities of the world. The fire was reported at a 35-storey high-rise in Downtown Dubai next to the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building. However, the fire was extinguished just before 4 am and the building's residents were safely evacuated without injuries.

Videos posted on social media showed flames engulfing several floors of the building that reportedly belongs to the construction giant Emaar, the state-backed developer in Dubai. News agency Associated Press said it wasn't immediately clear if the fire caused injuries to anyone. According to a report, the building is part of a series of towers called 8 Boulevard Walk by Emaar, and it now has black char marks across the facade. Quoting eyewitnesses, local media reports said the fire had started on a lower apartment and then spread upwards, and that emergency services extinguished the flames soon. There was reportedly a traffic build-up in the morning as the nearby streets in the area were closed off.

This is however not the only one as Dubai, the city of skyscrapers, has reported a series of fires in its tall buildings in recent years. In April, a fire was reported at Dubai's luxury Swissotel Al Murooj hotel, opposite the Burj Khalifa. But no injuries were reported in the incident, Independent reported. On New Year's Eve in 2015, a massive fire had broken out at the Address Downtown, one of the most upscale hotels and residences in Dubai coincidentally also near the Burj Khalifa.