Hotel guests evacuated after fire in Deira

Dubai - About forty five residents of the Welcome Hotel Apartment and employees working in the property were evacuated

The timely intervention of Dubai Civil Defence Rescue team and fire fighters helped save the lives of 45 multinational guests who were living in a leading hotel apartment in Muraqabat, Deira, Dubai on Friday evening.
About forty five residents of the Welcome Hotel Apartments and employees working in the property were evacuated after smoke started coming from the kitchen of a 24-hour restaurant located in the ground floor of the building located on the busy Abu Baker Al Siddique Road.  
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Mohammed Arif, Manager, Welcome Hotel Apartments said the 45 guests who were living in different floors of the hotel apartments were evacuated after fire alarms went off as a result of a fire in the restaurant kitchen. "Thanks to the timely intervention of Dubai Civil Defence there is no injury and casualty. All the guests are safe and ready to return to their rooms after two hours."
"I was living on the sixth floor apartment with my two children. Suddenly there was smoke and the alarm bell was ringing repeatedly. I have rushed out of the building with my two children who are safe now. I have been waiting outside for over two hours," said a Tanzanian national residing in Welcome Hotel Apartments.
"The fire erupted in the kitchen of Usmania Restaurant on the ground floor. The Civil Defence team came without much delay and the fire was brought under control However, all the staff and guests had to be evacuated as part of the fire fighting. Electricity was also disconnected from the building," another employee of Welcome Hotel Apartments told Khaleej Times.
"It is normally a crowded place and the presence of fire fighters and civil defence vehicles attracted a lot of onlookers and pedestrians on the pavement and from other buildings. I could see many guests waiting patiently outside the building. For a few hours the area was crowded though there was no flames or smoke visible outside. Thanks to Dubai Civil Defence, the fire was brought under control without affecting any of the high rise buildings in the area," said an eye witness.