TOWERING INFERNO
Britons flee flaming 991ft skyscraper… but amazingly just 14 people are injured
FAMILIES – including British tourists – fled for their lives as a massive fire broke out at a skyscraper in Dubai last night.
There were scenes of mass panic as hundreds tried to escape the inferno, which spread in minutes.
One Briton told how he tied his disabled mother to his back as he escaped from the 15th floor of the 991ft building.
Miraculously, only 14 people were hurt in the mayhem, although one man was feared to have died from a heart attack.
The blaze happened in a 63-storey skyscraper close to the Burj Khalifa – the world’s tallest building – which was due to host a massive fireworks display to see in the New Year. It started on a balcony on the 20th floor and engulfed one side of the building within five minutes.
Dramatic pictures showed flames licking the length of the skyscraper. At least one explosion could be heard.
Amid scenes of chaos, residents and visitors clambered over each other to escape. Outside burning debris rained down from the sky.
The building is home to the 200-room Address Downtown hotel and 600 private apartments. The cause of the blaze was not known last night but there was speculation it may have been started by a firework. Residents said no fire alarm was sounded and they only realised the building was on fire when they smelt
‘It was utter pandemonium’
smoke and saw the flames. British tourist Angus Villar strapped his wheelchairbound mother to his back to carry her to safety. He told Sky News: ‘I was on the 15th floor in the kitchen opening some champagne. My father went out onto the balcony and came back and screamed “the hotel is on fire”. There were five of us… My mother, I strapped her to my back, it was the only way of getting her out of the building. It was utter pandemonium.’
Hotel resident Kenneth Flynn fled when his partner saw debris fall to the ground from a bar window. He said: ‘People were crushing each other trying to get out … I was absolutely terrified.
‘The whole place was up in flames. The heat was so intense, it was unbelievable. Then people started to panic, crushing each other and jumping over railings. And there was no fire alarm.’
Those evacuated were taken to The Dubai Mall while the fire was tackled.
At 11.20pm local time, authorities said the blaze was 90 per cent under control and decided to go ahead with the fireworks show from the Burj Khalifa. Tens of thousands cheered at the display as teams of firefighters were working to put out the blaze.
The Dubai government’s media office later said there had been ‘14 minor injuries, one moderate and one heart attack case’. It said fire extinguishers had prevented the fire spreading inside the hotel.