Dubai: Residents affected by a fire that engulfed 38 apartments of Torch tower in Dubai Marina will continue to reside in nearby hotels until further notice from the Dubai Civil Defence (DCD), the building management said on Sunday.
Dubai Police said fire experts from the Forensic Department are continuing to collect evidence on site, in order to establish the cause of the fire. Once this process is completed, residents will be allowed to move back into the building.
Anel Carline, head of compliance and communication at Kingfield Owners Association management services, told Gulf News: “The majority of residents have taken up emergency accommodation in nearby hotels and arrangements are being extended until further notice from the DCD. Residents may access their units to collect valuables or urgent items under supervision of the Dubai Police.”
A total of 475 people were evacuated from the tower after 38 apartments out of the tower’s 676 units were burnt in a fire in the early hours of Friday. The DCD said 64 floors were affected by the blaze.
“We are unable to confirm any updates with regards to the damages caused in the fire at The Torch, or when residents will be able to return to their units as investigations are still under way by the authorities,” explained Carline.
She said the wellbeing of residents remains the main priority as “Kingfield continues to update residents on any developments, and are coordinating with local authorities, embassies, hotels and service vendors who are offering assistance.”
On Saturday, residents were briefly allowed back into their apartments to recover their valuables.
“By last night [Friday] the authorities provided access to residents to gather valuable and urgent items from apartments up to the 70th floor. Today [Saturday] access continues for apartments up to the 80th floor — as informed by DCD last night,” said the management in an official letter to residents.
The letter urged residents of the building to ensure they are registered with the Dubai Police directly on arrival at the site in order to gain access to their property.
Meanwhile, residents told Gulf News that some of the apartments showed signs of water damage, while others were badly damaged.
The incident at the Torch building also brought back memories for some residents who experienced the fire that ripped through the tower’s north-facing side in February of 2015.
This time, the fire affected apartments on the south-facing corner, when it erupted on the 26th floor and raged upward. The blaze was contained by firefighter within two hours. Dubai Civil Defence and Dubai Police evacuated the building swiftly, with no injuries or casualties reported.
