Family escapes death in minor roof collapse

Nine members of an Emirati family narrowly escaped death after some concrete blocks fell from the ceiling of their house in Ras Al Khaimah on Sunday.

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Published: Thu 26 Dec 2013, 12:11 AM

Last updated: Sat 4 Apr 2015, 10:21 AM

Sources in the RAK Civil Defence Department said the roof of the dining room in the Faliya house, built in the 80s, collapsed just a few minutes after the family got out.

A 70-year-old woman, Amina Mohammed, was having lunch with her eight children and grandchildren in the dining room. “Just three minutes after we got out of the room, we heard a big crash. On checking later, I saw that some concrete blocks had fallen from the ceiling, possibly due to earlier cracks,” she said.

She added that her house, which was built in 1981, consisted of three rooms, a dining room and a sitting room.

“I applied for a new house seven years back after the Zayed Housing Programme said that my house was crumbling, and needed to be replaced,” she said, noting that she was still waiting.

“All I need is a house to live safely in. There are many cracks on the ceilings of my rooms, the kitchen, toilet, and hall.”

Abdullah Hamad Rashid, son of Amina Mohammed, said they had done maintenance works on the ceiling of the house several times, which cost over Dh100,000, but they all proved useless.

“We wish for an instant response from the Zayed Housing Programme to our application to get a new house,” he said.

ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com


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