Dubai: Fire in Downtown hotel put out in minutes

A massive fire that broke out on the rooftop of a Dubai hotel on Wednesday afternoon has been put out by firefighters in 18 minutes, Dubai Civil Defense said.

Authorities said the fire gutted several air conditioners on the roof of Swissotel Al Murooj hotel in Burj Khalifa area. The cause of the fire remains unclear.

The building was immediately evacuated for people’s safety as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze.

The operations room received a report of the fire, which sent thick black plumes of smoke over downtown area in Dubai, at 3:19pm.

Firefighters from Zabeel, Al Rashidiya and Barsha stations were immediately dispatched, reaching the site within only four minutes. The fire was brought under control by 3:41pm, before cooling operations started 10 minutes later.

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