Large fire at Ajman apartment block brought under control

Emergency services in Ajman have contained a large fire that swept through a 15-storey residential building.

Ajman Police said some tenants had to be rescued from their homes as flames engulfed the apartment block.

There were no deaths or injuries recorded.

The tower was evacuated as firefighters battled the blaze, which broke out on Friday afternoon on Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Street.

The force said on social media that 16 apartments and 13 vehicles were damaged.

Police shared pictures and video of the fire taking hold in the lower section of the building.

Cooling operations were conducted after the fire was extinguished.

Police are investigating the cause of the incident.

Brig Gen Abdullah Al Matrooshi, director general of operations at Ajman Police, called on all building owners and tenants to follow safety measures to reduce the risk of fires.

Col Ailan Al Shamsi of Ajman Civil Defence said the emirate's fire crews were assisted by teams from Sharjah and Umm Al Quwain.

In June, Firefighters tackled a large blaze in a 36-storey tower in the Ajman One complex.

Ajman Civil Defence and police teams were able to bring the blaze under control.

Ajman Police said there were no injuries in the fire.

Lt Col Gaith Al Kaabi, director of Al Madinah Police Station, said 64 apartments and 10 cars were damaged in the blaze, while shelter was being provided for 256 residents in conjunction with Emirates Red Crescent.

Building fires on the rise

Recent Ministry of Interior figures revealed a significant increase in the number of building fires reported in the UAE.

Civil defence teams responded to more than 3,000 incidents in 2022, including 2,169 building fires – up 3 per cent from 2,090 in 2021 and 10 per cent higher than the 1,968 recorded in 2020.

The majority of fires took place in residential areas, with homes and apartments accounting for 1,385 of the incidents, the ministry said.

Emergency services responded to 396 incidents in Ajman last year.