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Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
World
Al Jazeera and news agencies

Major blaze engulfs Zen Tower in Dubai Marina

Firefighters responded to a fire that broke out at Zen Tower in the Marina district in Dubai [Christopher Pike/Reuters]

A residential tower has caught fire in Dubai amid a sandstorm that has hit large parts of United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

Videos of the blaze were widely shared on social media, showing the newly constructed Zen Tower in Dubai Marina engulfed in flames on Sunday morning.

The Dubai Civil Defence has been working to control the fire, the government-run Dubai Media Office said on Twitter.  

The cause of the fire remains unclear. Local media reported that the blaze started at approximately 11am (09:00 GMT).

"The building was evacuated safely and no injuries were reported," Dubai Media Office tweeted.

Director of Dubai Civil Defence, Rashid Thani Al Matroushi, said firefighters were at the site of the fire within six minutes of the incident. 

"Despite the difficulty of air conditions and low level of visibility, the firefighters were able to efficiently control the incident in 45 minutes," he told local media.  

Videos posted on social media also showed police halting the movement of vehicles across the road where the fire broke out. 

Dubai passed new fire safety rules in 2017, requiring buildings to install more fire-resistant cladding.

Authorities have previously acknowledged that at least 30,000 buildings across the UAE have cladding or panelling that safety experts have warned accelerates the spread of fires.

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