UAE: Fire at Dubai's man-made Palm island injures 3 people

Apparent electrical fault causes fire on offshore Dubai man-made touristic resort development known as Palm Island, injuring three people. A fire broke out on Dubai's man-made Palm Island development on Sunday (May 6), wounding three people and charring two unfinished buildings due to an apparent electrical fault. ''An electrical cable caught fire, made smoke. the fire engines are still operating. The police showed up and are trying to put the fire out'', said construction worker, Sallaam Sallaam. Two multi-storey car park buildings were gutted by the fire on the luxury development, which one witness said started as early as 4 p.m. local time (12 p.m. GMT), and bellowing clouds of black smoke could be seen from miles (kilometres) away. ''The fire's been going for about two hours (since 12pm GMT). The whole building, and it is a huge building is on fire'', said a construction worker. Rescue workers at the scene said three people were receiving treatment but did not give further details. Fire-fighters said the fire was believed to be the result of an electrical mishap. The blaze appeared to have been extinguished within two hours. The island's developer, Nakheel, said in a statement that one person was taken to hospital due to smoke inhalation, adding that the fire erupted in a building developed by another firm. Government-owned Nakheel says the Palm, which juts into the shallow waters of the Gulf in the shape of palm fronds, was built using 100 million cubic metres of sand and rock, and is large enough to be seen from space. It is one of several major projects launched by Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates federation, to boost its status as a tourism and business hub. Most of the buildings on the island are still under construction and yet to be delivered to their affluent owners

ITN Source | May 7, 2007

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