“We were worried someone could be caught in the thick flames that spread fast in the building that accommodated more than 200 families,” he said.

“We are happy to confirm that no one has died. Our teams have searched everywhere this morning and no body was found.”

Six people were injured, with one serious case of an Arab woman who inhaled smoke and was rescued by firefighters from the staircase.

According to a senior police officer, the road leading to the building is still cordoned off. Police and forensic investigation in the building will begin only after the Sharjah Municipality certifies that it is safe to enter it.

The officer said, “We have not received any report from any of the residents about missing family members. Investigation will be concluded in the coming days, revealing the main cause of the fire.”

Charities pitch in

The 56 members of 21 families who survived the fire are being accommodated in Amwaj Hotel Suites, Al Dhiyafa Palace Hotel and Rayan Hotel, said Salah Salman, Director of Public Relations at the Red Crescent Branch in Sharjah.

“We gave them all basic requirements like clothes, free meals and toiletries last night, and we are willing to host them until they can again afford their own accommodation elsewhere,” he said.

He also said the Ministry of Interior was following up on the victims to help them with the required documents.

Salih Eid Al Shuwayheen, Director of Charity Affairs at the Sharjah International Charitable Organisation, said they are offering some cash to the victims to help them move on with their lives.

“We have so far given Dh1,500 each to all those staying in hotels from the Red Crescent’s account. We shall continue giving more money and required assistance to all victims who come to us,” he said.

Residents recall horror

Mustafa Jamalludin, an Egyptian resident, said he was asleep when the fire broke out and the loud noise of the evacuation efforts woke him up.

“The whole room was dark and I ran to the front door in my night dress. The rescue personnel were in the staircase calling out to people stuck in the rooms,” he said.

“I screamed aloud that I am here and two rescuers appeared and helped me go down through the stairs.”

Jamalludin, an Arabic teacher in Sharjah who has been in the UAE since 1968, found his wife outside the building, pleading to rescuers to go up and find his husband from their seventh-floor apartment.

The couple lost all their belongings in the house. Their Mercendes Benz car parked outside the building also caught fire, but they are happy that they are still alive, he said.

Rafidah Hamza, a Sudanese woman who was on a visit to the UAE and was in a relative’s house on the third floor, was also alerted by the evacuation steps.

“All I could carry with me was my Sudanese wrap. I ran out barefooted. I only realized that I wasn’t wearing sandals or shoes after the police brought me to this hotel,” she said from her Amwaj Hotel room.

Rafidah is worried that she had lost her travel documents, especially since she has to return to Sudan soon. She went to the Heera police station to get police papers she has to present to the Sudan Consulate in Dubai to get new documents.

Raja Ram, who resided in a seventh-floor apartment, was returning from work at 5.30pm. He said he was caught in a traffic jam on Al Arouba Road that leads to his house. He later learnt from a radio news bulletin that his building was on fire.

Indian Consulate to
issue new papers

Officials from the Indian Consulate in Dubai along with members of the Indian Association Sharjah (IAS) visited the scene. They said the consulate would provide all assistance to those who have lost their passports and other documents.

“We have told them to coordinate with IAS members. We have asked them to provide some proof for their documents. IAS will also help them compile the data of Indians affected in
the fire,” said an official.

afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE

Afkar Ali Ahmed

afkarali@khaleejtimes.com