A fire broke out Thursday night at the high-end Address hotel in downtown Dubai, the government of the United Arab Emirates’ most populous city said.
DUBAI, (United Arab Emirates) — A 63-story luxury hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, burst into flames on Thursday evening, causing an evacuation of a large crowd that had gathered amid the city’s skyscrapers for New Year’s Eve.
The hotel, The Address Downtown Dubai, opened in 2008 and is steps from the Burj Khalifa, which is generally recognized as the world’s tallest building.
It was not immediately clear what caused the fire, which covered at least 20 stories of the building near the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper, AP reports.
Burning debris rained down from the building as firetrucks raced to the scene.
No injuries have yet been reported.
The hotel and residential compound has nearly 200 rooms and over 600 apartments.
Local media say that The Address has been evacuated, and people are being moved out of the Dubai Mall located nearby.
Currently, there are at least four firefighting brigades at the site to deal with the blaze and ensure the safety of the public, according to the Twitter account of the Dubai government’s media office.
The Dubai government’s media office said on its Twitter feed that civil defense teams were working to evacuate the hotel and tackle the fire.
The Address Hotel in Dubai, right outside the Burj Khalifa is on fire. Thoughts and prayers go out to those affected pic.twitter.com/Sbl3UQauSR
— Relatable Quotes (@RelatableQuote) December 31, 2015
Fire at #TheAddress hotel, Downtown Dubai (Photo by KT surfer Lalith Kumar) pic.twitter.com/8CBHMZ7NZX
— Khaleej Times (@khaleejtimes) December 31, 2015
