They are living on social aid. The dilapidated house situated in the Old Madhab area of Fujairah is owned by the widow of Said Ahmed Rashid, identified only as Amal. “The late Shaikh Rashid granted us the three-bedroom house in 1982. My family comprises a divorced daughter with two kids, an unemployed son with four children and three other children who are studying,” she said.

“Cracks appeared in the ceiling of the house because of moisture. I tried to repair them. On October 2, part of the ceiling of a bedroom collapsed. Fortunately, no one was in the room.

“We reported the incident to the Civil Defence Department which sent a team of specialists who checked the damage, closed the room and ordered evacuation,” she said.

The family members find it safer to sleep in the courtyard because they fear the ceiling of the other two rooms might also collapse. “We appeal to the officials concerned to study our case and help us build a house or restore the same house,” she said.