Man injured in Khorfakkan house fire caused by gas leak

Khorfakkan: Specialised teams from the General Command of Sharjah Police and the Sharjah Civil Defence Authority responded to a house fire in Khorfakkan on Friday morning. A 52-year-old man sustained burns in the incident and was rushed to hospital for treatment.

Colonel Walid Al Yamahi, Director of the Eastern Region Police Department, said the Operations Room received a report at 6:00 a.m. from a family member who heard an explosion followed by a fire inside the house. Police, civil defence units and the national ambulance service were immediately dispatched to the scene.

Preliminary investigations by civil defence fire experts found that the blaze was caused by a minor gas leak from the home’s internal sewage system, which ignited flames in parts of the property.

Col. Al Yamahi urged residents to regularly check the safety and cleanliness of sewage systems, follow safety guidelines when handling flammable gases, and ensure periodic inspections by the relevant authorities. He stressed that such precautions are essential to protect lives and property and to prevent similar accidents.

Aman Abdullah Suleiman Al Hammadi, the brother of the victim  said  his brother suffered burns ranging from second to third degree and is currently undergoing a series of surgeries at Sheikh Khalifa Specialized Hospital in Fujairah.

“The explosion happened around 5 am when my brother went to the kitchen,” Al Hammadi said. “The blast shattered the windows, doors, and walls of our home. Neighboring houses also suffered damage, with some windows completely destroyed.”

He described the force of the explosion as so powerful that it was heard across the city of Khorfakkan. “My sister was on her way to work, and our father was at the hospital. By God’s grace, they escaped without a scratch,” Al Hammadi added.