MAKKAH, 18 July 2007 — Three people died and 26 were injured in a fire in a hotel in the holy city of Makkah yesterday. Civil Defense rescue workers evacuated 905 people from the hotel near the Grand Mosque on Al-Iza Street.
The spokesman for Makkah Civil Defense, Abdullah Al-Amri, said that the civil defense had received a call at 11:44 a.m. informing them about the fire. The fire started in a balcony on the 12th floor of the 15-floor hotel.
Al-Amri said that nine civil defense teams participated in helping evacuate hotel guests and staff. The cause of the fire could not be ascertained.
