Victims lash out at owner of gutted residential tower

Sharjah: Homeless victims of a 25-storey tower fire lashed out at building owners yesterday after some tenants were forced to spend the night in their cars amid one of the worst winter cold snaps in recent memory.

As many as 125 families were evicted by a wall of flames early Wednesday that engulfed the rear façade of the tower and destroyed 14 cars parked nearby.

Authorities are probing the cause of the four-hour blaze amid tenant complaints that the building's fire alarm system, water sprinklers and emergency evacuation lighting allegedly failed to work.

But the building's Qatari owner rejected those claims in a statement.

"The building was in compliance with fire and safety standards prescribed and all fire and safety systems were in place," the statement said.

Floor-by-floor return

Amid the bedlam outside the Al Baker Tower 4 in Al Taawun yesterday, Sharjah Police organised a floor-by-floor return for some residents who needed emergency items such as medicine and proper clothing.

One elderly Palestinian woman waiting out the ordeal in a car received critical heart medicine from a nearby pharmacy with the assistance of police.

Tempers, meanwhile, flared at the scene as tenants said they received no aid despite reports of accommodation and financial assistance being provided.

Sharjah Charity, UAE Red Crescent and Sharjah Club were on the scene hours after the incident to offer all the help they could.

While some victims told Gulf News they were grateful for the assistance, others claimed they were turned away.

"They [charity workers] told me they didn't provide anything," said tenant Nader Osman.

"That's why I was surprised to read that people were put in hotels or got money to help."

Even those who received help said yesterday that while three nights of accommodation would get them through the immediate crisis, they still faced a bleak future having watched their lives go up in smoke.

No'man Damoodi, who lived in flat 404, asked: "To what benefit is the accommodation if we have lost everything? I've lost my gold savings, university degree, laptop and passports."

Damoodi said he went to the Al Baker Real Estate office and was offered a place in a new building in nearby Al Nahda. Other tenants told Gulf News they received a similar offer.

Without sanctuary, residents camped at the entrance of the building yesterday. Some brought lawn chairs while others laid carpets on grass and waited for word of assistance.

Insurance issues

Residents were angry the landlord had not clarified issues surrounding insurance coverage.

While the building may be covered, some residents said they did not have individual contents insurance and may have lost all of their belongings.

Authorities have not released damage estimates.

Several victims told Gulf News they lost life savings — as high as Dh130,000 for one resident who stowed kept cash in his apartment. Another man claimed he had lost gold bars worth up to Dh50,000.

Sharjah An American citizen who helped respond to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 said civilian efforts to assist stranded fire victims in Sharjah yesterday could have been better coordinated.

While police officers did what they could to lead a controlled salvage effort to help evicted tenants recover critical items and medicines, tenants were still in the dark as to basic information about the status of their living quarters.

American university professor Dr Jehad Mahmoud inadvertently found himself fleeing his son's apartment on the 24th floor on the morning of the fire and was in the mix of angry tenants early Wednesday. "There is a lack of concrete information this morning," he told Gulf News. "What are the rights of tenants and who is going to be responsible?"

A biology professor with Louisiana State University, Mahmoud said it was important to be prepared when tragedy struck.

Pitching in

During the Katrina disaster in New Orleans, Mahmoud headed the Islamic Centre of Baton Rouge from which volunteers immediately pitched in to help the US Federal Emergency Management Agency effort.

"When Katrina struck, people from all backgrounds came forward and helped," he said.

"I was in charge of the Islamic Centre and everyone stepped up to the plate."

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