Sharjah Abbco Tower fire caused by cigarette, police on hunt for culprit

  DUBAI – The fire that razed the Abbco Tower in Sharjah last week was sparked by a discarded cigarette butt, authorities revealed on Sunday (May 10). Sharjah Police said an investigation is underway to find out who tossed the cigarette and “take him to court for legal action”. "It is unfortunate that one silly act of a careless person has caused such huge damage," said Brigadier Ahmed Al Serkal, director of forensic laboratories. Investigation showed that the discareded cigarette butt landed on a pile of cartons on the first floor of the building, which started the blaze on May 5. "It must have been thrown by someone from the upper floors or a neighbouring building," Al Serkal said. https://www.expatmedia.net/filipino-left-homeless-sharjah-tower-fire-birthday/2020/05/ The fire quickly spread because the 48-storey tower in Al Nahda used highly flammable cladding that has been banned in the UAE since 2017 for fanning similar fires. Major General Saif Al Shamsi, head of Sharjah Police, said, “The fire then spread to one of the apartments on the first floor and quickly spread onto the other ‎floors due to the presence of cladding, which are flammable plates.” According to Sharjah Police, the fire destroyed 26 apartments and damaged 64 others out of 333 apartments in the tower. A total of 33 cars were also damaged by fallen debris.

150 Sharjah buildings to be stripped of banned cladding

Meanwhile, officials said that up to 150 old buildings in Sharjah will be retrofitted and stripped of the flammable cladding following the Abbco Tower fire. Abbco Tower was built in 2005, before the federal fire code banned the use of the highly flammable aluminium composite panel cladding. Sharjah Ruler Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi has directed officials to review and replace the cladding in old buildings to ensure the safety of residents. ICA/Expat Media
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