DUBAI Within 24 hours of an XPRESS story about toxic sewer gas leaks in an Emirates Living villa, developer Emaar has fixed the problem and put gas sensors in the building.
Three hydrogen sulfide gas detectors have been installed in the Al Ghadeer 2 villa whose Cypriot tenants, including two children, aged four and two years, suffered acute respiratory infections because of frequent gas inhalation.
Police report
After a February 7 gas leak forced them out of their home for the 14th time in recent months, the tenant Erol Souleymanoglu, 33, lodged a police complaint against the landlord for not fixing the problem despite several reminders.
Souleymanoglu said he had barely finished reading the XPRESS report highlighting his plight when 15 Emaar technicians turned up at his place on February 11 and spent seven hours fixing the sewer lines in his bathrooms.
“The water in my toilet bowl used to keep draining out on its own. Without any water to hold it, the gas would seep out. The technicians suspect the problem was caused by blocks in the trap pipes. They cleared it and also installed sensors to detect any gas leakage. I have had no problem since then,” he said, adding that sensors will sound an alarm if the level of Hydroden sulfide gas in the air exceeds the permissible limits of 5 per minute (ppm).
Souleymanoglu, who rented the three-bedroom villa for Dh195,000 in April 2015, said his landlord has offered to reimburse three months’ rent if he vacates the place now.
