Nine people died and 89 were injured in more than 2,000 building fires in the UAE last year, official figures show.
Data released by the Ministry of Interior revealed 18 of those injured were firefighters.
The number of blazes in residential buildings, including villas and apartment blocks, increased by 8.4 per cent from the previous year.
The ministry said 2,090 building fires were recorded last year, up from 1,968 in 2020.
Fire crews battle tower blaze - in pictures
The number of fires in residential properties rose from 1,277 in 2020 to 1,385 last year.
The increase prompted a fire chief in Sharjah to call on the public to follow safety rules.
“One of the most important causes of fires that occur in homes and apartments is failing to follow prevention and safety requirements,” said Col Sami Al Naqbi, director general of Sharjah Civil Defence.
He urged people to ensure electrical appliances were working properly, cable connections in working order and that power supplies were not overloaded.
He said this was particularly important in the hot summer months, when air conditioners were used more frequently.
“All these can cause short circuits that lead to causing fires,” he said.
He also urged the public to properly store gas cylinders and ensure regulators and pipes were intact and not too close to a heat source.
Improper use of flammable materials can also be a fire risk, he said.
“Statistics revealed that smoking inside bedrooms, using incense burners inside wardrobes and poorly stored flammable materials are other main causes of fire outbreaks in homes,” he said.
He urged residents and citizens to ensure they have functioning fire extinguishers at home.
Crews were called to a variety of building blazes during the year, including at shops, farms, health centres, shopping centres, hotels, restaurants and warehouses.
Figures show that 775 fire incidents were reported in Abu Dhabi, followed by 364 in Dubai.
Another 304 were reported in Ajman, 293 in Sharjah, 149 in Fujairah, 145 in Ras Al Khaimah and 60 in Umm Al Quwain.
Nearly 44 per cent were registered as minor incidents. Major fires comprised only 1.2 per cent of all fire incidents.
“A quick response is significant because fires spread quickly, therefore we worked on reducing our response time from 5.1 minutes in 2020 to 4.86 minutes in 2021,” Col Al Naqbi said.
Harnessing technology to fight fires
Dubai Civil Defence was this month given approval to use drones to fight high-rise fires in the emirate.
The move from the General Civil Aviation Authority allows the use of drones for backup and support operations, state news agency Wam reported.
It will help Civil Defence to tackle fires in hard-to-reach places, such as high-rise buildings, confined spaces and warehouses storing hazardous material.
Sharjah Police regularly use drones to ensure a quick response to fires.
Mavic 2, one of the force's high-tech aerial fleet, was sent in to find tenants inside the 48-storey Abbco Tower after it was engulfed by a fire in 2020.
“Being a time-sensitive matter, the device was deployed to locate any tenants who were not able to make it out of the tower,” said Capt Omran Al Matrooshi, head of the drone unit at Sharjah Police.
“It was able to find all three people, who were taken out to safety."
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
The Lost Letters of William Woolf
Helen Cullen, Graydon House
The specs: 2019 BMW X4
Price, base / as tested: Dh276,675 / Dh346,800
Engine: 3.0-litre turbocharged in-line six-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 354hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 1,550rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.0L / 100km
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
Company%20Profile
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Aayan%E2%80%99s%20records
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SPEC%20SHEET
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Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Rooney's club record
At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
The%20specs
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THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
The distance learning plan
Spring break will be from March 8 - 19
Public school pupils will undergo distance learning from March 22 - April 2. School hours will be 8.30am to 1.30pm
Staff will be trained in distance learning programmes from March 15 - 19
Teaching hours will be 8am to 2pm during distance learning
Pupils will return to school for normal lessons from April 5
SEMI-FINAL
Monterrey 1
Funes Mori (14)
Liverpool 2
Keita (11), Firmino (90 1)
Fanney Khan
Producer: T-Series, Anil Kapoor Productions, ROMP, Prerna Arora
Director: Atul Manjrekar
Cast: Anil Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai, Rajkummar Rao, Pihu Sand
Rating: 2/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
'Lost in Space'
Creators: Matt Sazama, Burk Sharpless, Irwin Allen
Stars: Molly Parker, Toby Stephens, Maxwell Jenkins
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
CONCRETE COWBOY
Directed by: Ricky Staub
Starring: Idris Elba, Caleb McLaughlin, Jharrel Jerome
3.5/5 stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
