Dubai: A huge fire broke out at the Lamcy Plaza shopping mall on Friday. Thick black smoke billowing out of the building can be seen from a few kilometers away.
Few shoppers were inside the multi-level mall when the fire erupted shortly after 11am, an official said. Firefighters battled the flames for about two hours before it was contained. No one was injured, said a Civil Defence official.
Dubai Civil defense contained the fire that broke at Lamcy Plaza Center, and no injuries have been reported. Cooling operations underway. — Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) March 3, 2017
Credit: Virendra/ Gulf News
General Rashid Al Matroushi, Director of Dubai Civil Defense, told Gulf News: “It was a big fire and it started on the top of the mall. Six fire stations were called to the scene. Part of the mall was burned and we don't know about the losses until now."
Thick smoke prevented firefighters from entering the mall at the beginning, but later they identified the source of the fire and they went inside to extinguish the fire, he said.
General Al Matroushi told Gulf News: "The fire lasted for two hours and we controlled it and now cooling operation is on. Nobody has been hurt or injured."
General Al Matroushi said fire experts from Dubai Police will inspect the site to identify the reason behind the fire.
A mobile hospital was seen at the scene along with ambulances.
A Dubai Civil Defence spokesman said: "We received emergency call about fire at Lamcy Plaza at 11:17am. Teams from Karama, Itihad and Port Saeed stations rushed to the scene."
The fire had been fully contained by about 4pm, according to Civil Defence.
Credit: Virendra/ Gulf News
The fire is believed to have started in a fan of the air-conditioning unit on the rooftop, Civil Defence sources said.
Both Dubai Police Chief Major General Abdullah Khalifa Al Merri and Brigadier Rashid Thani Al Matroushi, Director General of the Dubai Civil Defence, arrived at the scene to take stock of the situation.
Lamcy Plaza has been evacuated to ensure safety of all and facilitate firefighting operations.
— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) March 3, 2017
Major General Abdullah Al Merri, Dubai police chief said:
"The fire started in the ceiling and then spread from there. Nobody was hurt," he told Gulf News.
He said that the mall was evacuated and a team of fire investigation experts will determine the reason behind the fire.
"The building has flammable materials and clothes shops, which helped spread the fire. The reason behind the fire is still unknown. An investigation will be conducted," he added.
Tim Jones, Chief operation officer of Lamcy Plaza, told Gulf News there were not many shoppers when the fire started.
"I was alerted about the fire and rushed to the scene," said Jones. "There were few shoppers when the fire started and the evacuation went smoothly and nobody hurt. Dubai Civil Defence teams came in few minutes and controlled the situation."
Abdullah Al Marri Commander-in-Chief of @DubaiPoliceHQ&Rashid Al Matroushi Director General of @DCDDubai on site following Lamcy Plaze fire pic.twitter.com/q3TwZtyQb6
— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) March 3, 2017
Credit: Floyd Gonsalves/Gulf News
Lamcy Plaza fire fully contained by Dubai Civil Defence, no injuries reported at the site. #Dubai pic.twitter.com/rcwaFmOsMT— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) March 3, 2017
