Balcony, cigarette-butt fire hazard biggest threat to building safety: Dubai Police fire expert

Fire experts at the Department of Criminal Evidence and Criminology of Dubai Police have called on residents of buildings and towers not to leave furniture or any other such items in their balconies in order to prevent fires breaking out.

Mahmoud El-Shahat, a fire expert at the department told this website that most of the fires that break out start due to cigarette butts or remnants of shisha falling from top floors onto balconies of lower floors where flammable items were stored.

He called on Dubai Municipality to enforce strict measures to deter families from using their balconies as storage space for discarded or old household items.

El-Shahat pointed out that three towers - two in Sharjah and one in Dubai – have in the recent past been completely burnt due to this.

He added three fires broke out recently on balconies of buildings located in Dubai in a single day all due to falling burning coals.

He said the department uses a four-stage process for ensuring fires do not take place.

Stages include relying on the local departments and relevant associations, including associations of engineers, developers and civil defense.

He added that according to statistics with the Department of Criminal Evidence and Criminology 55 fires occurred in Dubai during the first 11 months of 2012 because some type of burning object falling from the upper floors.

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