Nowhere to go for gutted Dubai building residents

Dubai - Residents of Dubai building gutted in fire forced to stay in car park. Building owner vows to pay accommodation costs of 48 families.

"I haven't gone for work today as I have nothing to wear," said a Filipino resident of a residential complex in Deira that was gutted in a fire on Monday evening.
Residents of the complex found strength in each other as they waited in the parking lot of a nearby building. Living off essential supplies like food, water, blankets, clothes and pillows donated by residents of neighbouring buildings, many of the victims had no place to go.
A large number of families living the in the three apartment blocks that were gutted have lost all their personal belongings. The close to 30-year-old complex was inhabited predominantly by Asians - Filipinos, Indians and Pakistanis - and many of them come from humble backgrounds.
The building's owner has pledged to pay for the accommodation costs of 48 families affected by the blaze for the next three months, a top police officer said.
Brigadier Dr Mohammed Al Murr, Director of the human rights department of the Dubai Police, said the building's owner reached the site as soon as he came to know about the fire. The gutted blocks had 48 three-bedroom flats, each of which was occupied by a family of six to nine members.
Brig Al Murr said fire experts have visited the site to investigate the cause of the fire.
Brigadier Ali Ghanim, director of the Murraqqabat police station, confirmed the three blocks have been gutted and the material losses are expected to be "huge".
No casualties were reported in the fire that broke out at 5.30pm.
'We went out running'
T.P., the owner of an appliance store below block 'A', said he was in his office when the fire broke out. According to T.P., the fire broke out in a narrow corridor between block 'A' and 'B'.
"The fire started around 5.20pm. When we smelled the smoke, we went out running and saw a small blaze between the two blocks ... It used to be a storage place for old cardboards and blocks of wood," said T.P.
Strong winds fanned the blaze and caused it to spread to three blocks, he said. "Since the balconies of all the flats had clothes that were kept out to dry, the blaze spread rapidly. In a short while, block 'A' and 'B' were on fire ... and it spread to block 'C' as well."
Help for victims
On Tuesday, Khaleej Times found about 100 Filipinos staying in the parking lot of a building behind the gutted building. They said they have nowhere to go and no one has offered to accommodate them. While some of the residents stayed with their friends, others were forced to sleep in the parking lot.
A 12-year-old boy, Karl Russelco, was seen at the site running around, offering assistance to the helpless residents.
"I came with my mother in the morning to help the victims. We provided them food and blankets. Some of our neighbours distributed lunch and clothes to the victims," said the little boy.
Some residents said they don't know what to do.
"A lot of us only had bed spaces in the building ... I slept at my friend's house last night. Since I haven't been allowed to enter the building, I don't know what shape my house is in and how much of my belongings are left," said Alvin Villanueva, a Filipino, who had been living in the building for over a year. "We could use with more donated supplies like blankets and pillows. Many of us only have the clothes on our back."
Another Filipino, Jonil Bugo, who had been residing in block 'A' of the complex for the last eight months, said: "It happened all of a sudden. Many of us were at work when the fire broke out ... Whoever was inside was rescued by the civil defence. The problem is that we don't have anything with us."
Many residents lost important documents like passports and bank documents.
Filipino resident, Michelle, said all her belongings, including her passport, were inside when the fire broke out. She has lodged a police complaint about the loss of her passport.
An employee of a shop in the building, Mohammed Safat, said he was not sure if he had a job anymore, as the shop was gutted.
Traffic jams, chaos
Some roads around the area continued to witness traffic jams for the second consecutive day. The Salauddin Road, which was closed on Monday, was opened partially, but there was traffic jam in the area.
Three fire engines from the Hamriya Civil Defence Station are still stationed at the site as a precautionary measure.
Meanwhile, Dubai Municipality officials are also on high alert. Ahmed Ibrahim, head of safety section at the municipality, said workers haven't been able to access the building or its surrounding areas as it was still hot.
"We have cordoned the building to prevent the fall of any debris," he said. "Municipality workers ... are at the fire scene since (Tuesday) morning ... Some flats were not affected, but we will not let residents go there unless we make sure it is safe to do so."
amira@khaleejtimes.com
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com

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