MAKKAH: A fire at King Abdul Aziz Endowment Towers here yesterday gutted six floors of Sara Tower in the complex located close to the Grand Mosque. No deaths or injuries were reported in the blaze that was quickly contained by Civil Defense.
Eyewitnesses said the fire broke out soon after Asr prayer while some workers in the building were welding iron rods on wooden scaffoldings. The fire damaged a large part of the building, which is under construction.
This is the second fire in the building in six months. The first fire, which burned for 10 hours, consumed nine floors of Hajer Tower.
Maj. Gen. Adel Zamzami, director general of Civil Defense in the Makkah province, said his firemen had rushed to the site soon after receiving information about the fire.
“The fire broke out at the 14th floor and spread mainly to floors above ,” Zamzami told Arab News. The fire reached up to the 20th floor of the tower.
The seven-tower King Abdul Aziz endowment project, which is being constructed by Saudi Binladin Group, is one of the largest residential projects in the world. Spread over an area of 1.4 million square meters, the project will cost SR6 billion. Work on two towers — Marwa and Safa — have been completed.
— With input from Wajdi Al-Qurashi
