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29 March 2024

Dh1m 'burned' in UAQ mattress factory fire

The charred remains of the factory. (VM Sathish)

Published
By VM Sathish

A newly established furniture company that manufactured mattresses was gutted in a major  fire on Monday night, leaving the owner with a loss of not less than Dh 1 million and difficult situation for the company’s  employees, mostly from Bangladesh, who are living now in the open air without air conditioning.

Speaking to Emirates 24|7, Murali, manager of Flexicom  Foam and Mattress Factory, Umm al Quwain, said the new factory, which was inaugurated in December 2011, was almost completely gutted in a fire that erupted after 10pm on Monday.

“We are not living in the factory area and we got a call from our workers about the fire. By the time the fire engine from the civil defence department reached the factory site, half of the factory had already been burnt and now nothing is left in the factory. We have lost an entire stock of foam and mattresses and machinery,” he said.

The fire also caused disruption of life for the company’s workers who were living in an adjacent labour camp.

“The factory normally closes at 6 pm and we were alerted about the fire by some people from the neighbourhood. The fire started at about 10.15 pm and we all ran out of the building for life. Our labour camp’s walls and an adjacent factory too were partially damaged in the fire. Now there is no electricity in the building and we are sleeping under the trees. We cannot cook food, our belongings are intact but there is no roof over our head,” said a Bangadeshi worker.

“We did not get our salary for the month. We are starving and it is very tough to sleep outside in this summer heat,” he added.

The company manager said the owner is shocked by the fire that caused a huge loss to him but the workers will be shifted to another accommodation.

Another Bangladeshi worker said: “We are also not sure whether the factory will resume operations.”

The cause of the fire is being investigated and insurance formalities are being completed.