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Fire engulfed a 63-storey
skyscraper in downtown Dubai on Thursday night, but there appeared to be no
injuries, a civil defence official said.
Reuters report continues:
Large
tongues of flame shooting skywards enveloped the luxury hotel and residential
block, which lies across a plaza from the world's tallest building, the Burj
Khalifa, where people were gathering for a spectacular fireworks display due to
mark the start of the New Year.
"There
are no injuries, thank God," Major General Rashed al-Matrushi, general
director of the Dubai Civil Defence, told the the pan-Arab television channel
Al Arabiya.
He
said the festivities would go ahead despite the fire, saying: "Of course,
it will not affect the celebration."
The
Dubai government's media office tweeted that civil defence teams were working
to evacuate the 300-metre hotel and tackle the fire.
It
said the blaze had started on the 20th floor, on the outside of the tower, and
that internal fire-fighting systems were operating to try to prevent it getting
inside the hotel. Four fire brigade teams were at the site.
Dubai
is a trade, tourism and investment hub for the Gulf region, and is one of seven
emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Every year, Dubai stages
one of the world's most spectacular fireworks displays from the 160-storey
Burj, which opened in 2010 and stands almost 830 metres (2,722 feet) tall.
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