DUBAI, 28 March 2008 — Police arrested the owner of the illegal fireworks warehouse that was the cause of a massive blaze in an industrial zone in Dubai on Wednesday, state news agency WAM reported yesterday.
The Criminal Investigations Department said they had questioned the owner of the warehouse on charges of storing fireworks illegally. He was referred to the public prosecution yesterday.
Meanwhile, Dubai Customs declared yesterday that the fireworks that detonated and caused the fire at Al-Qouz Industrial Area did not pass through any of Dubai’s ports.
“What is in Dubai does not necessarily mean it has entered Dubai through any of the ports or crossings of Dubai,” Dubai Customs said in a statement.
“Dubai Customs considers that there is a role for federal authorities to tighten control over access to the UAE to avoid recurrence of such incidents and to ensure the security and stability of the country,” it added.
Dubai police are continuing their investigation into the blaze that killed two people and injured five and caused over AED200 million in damages. Police promised a major crackdown on the illegal storage of fireworks soon.
The fire that started Wednesday morning was extinguished by 8 p.m. A Dubai Civil Defense source said that the site of the Al-Quoz fire would continue to billow smoke for at least two more days.
