Deadly villa fire caused by short circuit
BLAZE IN ABU DHABI STARTED IN MAIN HALL ELECTRICAL EXTENSIONS
Police point finger at poor electrical connections and lack of awareness of risks involved |
Ashort circuit caused the deadly fire in a villa in Bani Yas last week in which eight Emiratis died, Abu Dhabi Police said yesterday.
Investigations have found that the cause of the fire was a short circuit in electrical extensions in a corner of the main hall in the villa.
The eight Emiratis — three women and five children from one family — died and four others were injured in the fire, which started shortly before the predawn prayer on October 2 at a residential villa in Bani Yas East 7, opposite Al Imam Al Nawawi Mosque on the outskirts of the capital.
Abu Dhabi Police called on the public to ensure the safety of electrical appliances, wiring and extensions and urged the periodic testing of fire extinguishers in homes.
Many villas in Bani Yas do not have fire alarms installed.
Ali Al Kotheri, owner of the fire-hit villa, earlier told Gulf News that the villa was not old but did not have a fire alarm system.
Recalling the incident, he had earlier told Gulf News : “I went out for Fajr [predawn] prayers on Tuesday and when I returned I found my house was filled with smoke and fire. There were 20 members of the family sleeping at that time and ■ we rescued 12 of them — eight of them died of suffocation.”
Yesterday, police said fires caused by electrical faults were mainly due to poor electrical connections and the lack of awareness of the seriousness of the risks.
Police also said the hiring of workers who are not competent to do repairs and electrical wiring was also attributable as a reason for such fires.
Avoid overloading plugs
Authorities called on residents not to leave cooking oil residue near sources of fire and to avoid loading electrical plugs of devices above their power capacity. Users were also advised to disconnect electricity when leaving the house for long periods, as well as to unplug mobile devices and keep matches and candles out of the reach of children.
Eyewitnesses and neighbours told Gulf News that, when they woke up for Tuesday’s early morning prayer, they heard police sirens but never realised that such a tragic incident had happened in their area.
They said the incident happened at around 4.30am on Tuesday, adding the family was very dear to them and they used to visit the family at their home.
A huge crowd from the neighbourhood had gathered to try and rescue the family but the fire had quickly engulfed all floors of the villa. The members of the family, including the children, suffocated from the smoke.