SHARJAH- Sharjah Civil Defence and Anjad patrols from the Sharjah Police General Directorate contained a blaze that broke out in a residential building in Sharjah’s Butainah, saving the lives of a large number of residents.
According to a report by the Sharjah Government Media Bureau, the rapid response and dedication of the Civil Defence and Anjad units in handling the fire prevented its spread to a number of neighbouring apartments, whose residents had already been evacuated. The incident claimed five lives, including a Moroccan woman with her two children aged four and six, a Pakistani woman and an Indian man, and injured six people, who are now recovering at Kuwait Hospital from the symptoms of suffocation caused by the fire. Ten others, including nine Anjad officers and one from the Civil Defence, sustained minor to medium injuries and received treatment from the National Ambulance units that were present at the scene. Civil Defence teams and fire experts from Sharjah Criminal Laboratory are still at the scene dealing with what is left of the fire and investigating its causes. Initial data by the Sharjah Police General Directorate indicate that the fire broke out at 01:12 am in an apartment on the first floor of a three-storey building. As soon as the accident was reported to the Sharjah Police Central Operations Room, units from the Civil Defence and Anjad rushed to the scene and arrived within two minutes to begin evacuating residents and dealing with the fire. Major General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, Chief Brigadier of the Sharjah Police, expressed his deep regret for the incident and his condolences to the families of the victims and wished the injured a speedy recovery. He also stressed the continued efforts of the General Directorate in dealing with the damages caused by the fire, investigating the causes and updating the public on the results of investigation to help increase their alertness against the occurrence of such incidents. Lieutenant Colonel Sami Al Naqbi, Director General of Sharjah Civil Defence, praised the concerted efforts of the Civil Defence and Sharjah Police teams, together with their rapid response to control the incident. He called on members of the society to take all necessary safety precautions in residential buildings of all kinds, by ensuring the efficiency of electrical connections, closing gas valves before sleep, following proper evacuation procedures during accidents and using escape exits. The Director General of Sharjah Civil Defence asserted the need for individuals to own and know how to use basic firefighting equipment, in addition to being aware of the Civil Defence phone numbers: 999 and 997 and the correct mechanism of reporting accidents to prevent injury or damage.
© Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2018.
