The moment a massive fire consumed a 67-story skyscraper in Dubai is captured in heart-stopping video.
Around 9.30 p.m. on Friday, the Marina Pinnacle, a residential complex with 3,820 residents in the upscale neighbourhood of the Dubai Marina, caught fire.
Early on Saturday morning, the fire was finally extinguished after six hours of work by Dubai Civil Defence teams.
According to Dubai Media Office (DMO), all 3,820 inhabitants from 764 flats were successfully evacuated, and no one was hurt.
According to a DMO representative on X, “Ambulance teams and medical staff are on site to offer full medical and mental support to the safely evacuated residents.”
Authorities and the building’s developers worked together to offer interim lodging for the affected tenants.
Residents have prepared temporary living arrangements as there has been no word on when they would be able to return to their houses.
Prateek M, an Indian expat, has temporarily relocated to a hotel. He stays on the 22nd floor with his wife and little son.
He told Khaleej Times: “Neighbours from the next building shouted and told me our tower was on fire. I grabbed my son and told my wife to head straight to the emergency exit with me.”
The young family fought their way down the stairs through heavy smoke.
“We had to hold on to the shoulders of the person in front of us,” he said. “Once we reached the parking levels, where it’s more ventilated, we could breathe a little better.”
“I hope to return to my flat soon to check for damage and to retrieve important documents,” Prateek told the publication.
“We are safe, and that’s what matters. But we hope to return home soon,” Prateek said.
When the fire started, Raza, who had been residing in the building for three years, wasn’t there.
When he got to the building at one in the morning, he recalls that the roads were shut.
“It was clear that I wouldn’t be able to go in” he said.
Raza began phoning cabs to transport people to their friends and family after noticing that his neighbours had fled the flaming building without their phones.
Raza said he is “grateful” that his boss has granted him time off to deal with his housing situation, adding, “Right now, I am just waiting to know when we can go back and collect our things.”
Unsettling video seems to indicate that the fire began on the building’s upper stories, while the source of the fire is yet unknown.
This is not the first fire to occur at the Marina; according to NDTV, a ‘kitchen mishap’ in May 2015 caused a fire to start on the 47th floor.
Due to the incident, travellers were alerted by Dubai’s transport authority of the possibility of delays between Palm Jumeirah Station and Dubai Marina Station.
According to an RTA social media statement, “this is to ensure passenger safety and to facilitate the work of firefighting teams responding to the incident.” There was an alternate bus service available.