Photo: Sharjah Civil Defence/Facebook

Sharjah: Two Filipinas suffocated as fire erupts in their partitioned apartment

Sharjah - Several residents were found living in the flat, which was divided into smaller rooms.

Published: Thu 4 Feb 2021, 4:35 PM

Updated: Thu 4 Feb 2021, 5:41 PM

By
Afkar Ali Ahmed

Two Filipinas suffered suffocation in a fire that broke out in their cramped, partitioned apartment in Sharjah’s Tawoon area on Thursday morning.

The blaze started in the flat’s kitchen, the Sharjah Police’s initial investigation revealed. The cause of the fire, however, is yet to be determined.

A top police official said more than a dozen residents were found living in the flat, which was divided into smaller rooms. This practice is illegal, he stressed, as such a set-up could be a fire hazard and threaten tenants’ lives. He urged residents to follow tenancy regulations and ensure safety.

The police were alerted to the incident at around 7.30am, he said. Within five minutes, the Civil Defence team was already at the site, and the fire was put out in 10 minutes.

The firefighters’ swift response prevented the blaze from spreading to the rest of the building.

afkarali@khaleejtimes.com