A high-rise tower that was gutted when a blaze tore through it on Tuesday night was covered with cladding that was banned on new buildings three years ago.
Sharjah's Abbco Tower was built in 2005 with an external material that was widely used in the Emirates until it was prohibited in January 2017.
Flames spread up and around the 48-storey building in minutes after it was first reported about 9pm.
It took several fire crews about three hours to bring the blaze under control, as debris rained down on parked vehicles.
Since the building is somewhat old, it was installed with the cladding before it was banned. The fire spread faster because of the cladding
Despite the intensity of the blaze, hundreds of residents escaped quickly, running down fire escapes in the 190-metre tower, one of Sharjah's tallest. Fire alarms that sounded in more than 300 apartments were credited with saving lives and only seven people were injured.
“The fire spread faster because of the cladding," Col Sami Al Naqbi, head of Sharjah Civil Defence, said.
"Since the building is somewhat old, it was installed with the cladding before it was banned."
Brig Ahmed Al Serkal, head of the forensic laboratory at Sharjah Police, said government officials were meeting to look at how widely the cladding was used and if it could be removed from towers built pre-2017.
"Cladding helps to spread fire from one floor to the other very fast," he said.
He said the cause was being investigated.
“For us to give the accurate cause of fire, our experts still need to examine the place, after firefighters search the building flat by flat to make sure no one was left behind,” he said.
The material is a form of aluminium composite panel cladding and was widely used during the UAE's construction boom.
It was a factor in several fires including The Torch and Zen Tower in Dubai Marina, the Address Downtown and the Adriatic building on the Palm Jumeirah. In all four buildings it was replaced during extension renovation.
The cladding, which gives buildings a sleek modern look and was cheap and easy to install, was also used on London's Grenfell Tower, in which 72 people died when a fire gutted the building in June 2017.
Grenfell was built in the early 1970s but fitted with cladding during a renovation in 2015-16 to improve energy efficiency and give it a fresher look.
Aluminium composite panel cladding was prohibited in UAE when the country's Fire and Life Safety Code of Practice was updated in 2016. It was made public in January 2017.
Builders must now use more expensive non-combustible cladding that better halts the spread of flames, but the authorities have not ordered that older buildings be retrofitted.
Andy Dean, head of facades at engineering firm WSP's Middle East office, said the industry was well are of the safety issues cladding poses.
"The problem was there was a lack of knowledge about façade cladding and there was no coupling between the fire and façade industries until 2012," he said, the same year Tamweel Tower in Dubai's Jumeirah Lakes Towers was left uninhabitable by a huge fire, and when the first update to the safety code began to tighten building regulations.
"People thought they were doing the right thing by using them. They are a low cost material that is high performing and durable."
The cost involved of stripping cladding from a building would be in the millions - Zen Tower's reconstruction and cladding removal was Dh25 million - but he said many companies were willing to face the problem.
"Retro fitting is absolutely feasible, it’s been happening here for at least five years or more," Mr Dean said.
"It’s not uncommon for the big developers to ask us “'can you tell me if my building is a problem?'”
"But it’s difficult and hugely expensive to take an entire façade off a building and replace it."
If full-scale renovation of a building is not possible, engineers may look at fire breaks - flame-proof barriers installed every 10 to 20 metres.
In many cases, he said safety could be improved significantly by ensuring sprinklers were installed and working and that alarm systems are up to date.
"A large part of the existing building stock has a problem and that can’t be ignored," he said.
"Things are changing here though, buildings are dramatically safer than years ago because of the introduction of the 2012 fire safety code."
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
VERSTAPPEN'S FIRSTS
Youngest F1 driver (17 years 3 days Japan 2014)
Youngest driver to start an F1 race (17 years 166 days – Australia 2015)
Youngest F1 driver to score points (17 years 180 days - Malaysia 2015)
Youngest driver to lead an F1 race (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest driver to set an F1 fastest lap (19 years 44 days – Brazil 2016)
Youngest on F1 podium finish (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest F1 winner (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest multiple F1 race winner (Mexico 2017/18)
Youngest F1 driver to win the same race (Mexico 2017/18)
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The biog
Hobby: Playing piano and drawing patterns
Best book: Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins
Food of choice: Sushi
Favourite colour: Orange
Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
Generation Start-up: Awok company profile
Started: 2013
Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev
Sector: e-commerce
Size: 600 plus
Stage: still in talks with VCs
Principal Investors: self-financed by founder
Buy farm-fresh food
The UAE is stepping up its game when it comes to platforms for local farms to show off and sell their produce.
In Dubai, visit Emirati Farmers Souq at The Pointe every Saturday from 8am to 2pm, which has produce from Al Ammar Farm, Omar Al Katri Farm, Hikarivege Vegetables, Rashed Farms and Al Khaleej Honey Trading, among others.
In Sharjah, the Aljada residential community will launch a new outdoor farmers’ market every Friday starting this weekend. Manbat will be held from 3pm to 8pm, and will host 30 farmers, local home-grown entrepreneurs and food stalls from the teams behind Badia Farms; Emirates Hydroponics Farms; Modern Organic Farm; Revolution Real; Astraea Farms; and Al Khaleej Food.
In Abu Dhabi, order farm produce from Food Crowd, an online grocery platform that supplies fresh and organic ingredients directly from farms such as Emirates Bio Farm, TFC, Armela Farms and mother company Al Dahra.
'Operation Mincemeat'
Director: John Madden
Cast: Colin Firth, Matthew Macfayden, Kelly Macdonald and Penelope Wilton
Rating: 4/5
'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse Of Madness'
Director: Sam Raimi
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg and Rachel McAdams
Rating: 3/5
'The Ice Road'
Director: Jonathan Hensleigh
Stars: Liam Neeson, Amber Midthunder, Laurence Fishburne
2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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BRAZIL%20SQUAD
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LIST OF INVITEES
Shergo Kurdi (am)
Rayhan Thomas
Saud Al Sharee (am)
Min Woo Lee
Todd Clements
Matthew Jordan
AbdulRahman Al Mansour (am)
Matteo Manassero
Alfie Plant
Othman Al Mulla
Shaun Norris
