Clown fish swim in a tank at the Burj Al Arab Aquarium. The Burj Al Arab rehabilitates turtles and marine life found in the UAE.
Clown fish swim in a tank at the Burj Al Arab Aquarium. The Burj Al Arab rehabilitates turtles and marine life found in the UAE.
Clown fish swim in a tank at the Burj Al Arab Aquarium. The Burj Al Arab rehabilitates turtles and marine life found in the UAE.
Clown fish swim in a tank at the Burj Al Arab Aquarium. The Burj Al Arab rehabilitates turtles and marine life found in the UAE.

Facelift for Burj Al Arab aquarium is no small feat


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DUBAI // The colourful fish at the luxurious Burj Al Arab have been moved into plush new accommodation of their own.

The lobby tanks, on either side of the lifts that whisk guests up into the hotel from the front entrance, had been there since the hotel opened in 1999.

But the rocks and artificial coral had become discoloured, so the decision was made to rip everything out and start again.
But this was by no means a straightforward task.

First the fish had to be caught and removed to tanks in the basement. This was achieved by throwing food into the water in one particular area, then netting the fish as they fed.

A few smart angelfish quickly figured out what was happening and stayed well away from that area, leaving aquarium staff no option but to drain the tanks until only 25 centimetres of water remained, so they could pick them up one by one.

“They were very clever,” said Warren Baverstock, the aquarium operations manager.

“As soon as a few of their tank buddies disappeared they just knew not to go to feed in that area, and they kept a low profile until we drained the tank down.

“We had to get in with buckets and small nets.”

Once the elusive angelfish had been rounded up, and the remainder of the 500,000 litres of water the tanks hold had been removed, work could begin in earnest.

“We had to support the acrylic windows and cover them to protect them,” said Mr Baverstock. “Then we had to remove all the existing rubber coral.

“From there we introduced scaffolding and cut away rockwork from certain areas of the old exhibit that we wanted to remove. We spent three weeks chopping rockwork.”

The previous coral reef theme has been completely re-imagined, while new energy-saving lighting gives guests a better view of the fish.
The refurbishment took three months, and the fish were gradually reintroduced last month.

Parts of the tanks that can be seen from the two private dining rooms that adjoin Al Mahara fish restaurant have been altered.
One section continues the coral reef theme while the other has been rebuilt to resemble a cave with stalactites hanging from the ceiling.

“We’ve introduced more opportunities for fish to hide,” said Mr Baverstock.

"Previously it was very much a sheer face with coral stuck on it, whereas now there are lots of cul-de-sacs, gaps and holes.
"We've introduced moray eels, and the fact we've got these areas where fish can go inside and hide creates an interesting aspect for guests.

“We even have a lobster in one of the tanks, which we introduced on Monday.”

The lucky lobster will star only in the tank, and not on Al Mahara’s menu.

Other newly introduced species include yellow tangs, cowfish, butterfly fish and batfish.

The three tanks contain a total of 3,000 fish from 40 species, most of which come from the Indian Ocean.

The final stage of the refurbishment is due to take place in 2014, when Al Mahara’s tank will get a completely new look.

"We're going to have a sunken dhow and a pearl diving theme," Mr Baverstock said. "It will be very historical and factual."
The Burj Al Arab was coy when asked about the cost of the refurbishment. A spokesman would only say it was "very expensive", which is to be expected at one of the world's most exclusive hotels.

“We’ve invested a lot in the guest experience,” Mr Baverstock said. “You only get one go at such a thing, and for me that was very stressful because it had to work.

“You can’t just drain a tank down and catch all the fish again. It’s not realistic.”

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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EWest%20Asia%20Premiership%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Tigers%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Bahrain%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20Premiership%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Jebel%20Ali%20Dragons%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Dubai%20Hurricanes%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20Division%201%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Sharks%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%20Harlequins%20II%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20Division%202%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Tigers%20III%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Dubai%20Sharks%20II%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDubai%20Sevens%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Tigers%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Dubai%20Hurricanes%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Afghanistan fixtures
  • v Australia, today
  • v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
  • v New Zealand, Saturday,
  • v South Africa, June 15
  • v England, June 18
  • v India, June 22
  • v Bangladesh, June 24
  • v Pakistan, June 29
  • v West Indies, July 4
Ain Dubai in numbers

126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure

1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch

16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.

9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.

5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place

192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.

Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

Federer's 11 Wimbledon finals

2003 Beat Mark Philippoussis

2004 Beat Andy Roddick

2005 Beat Andy Roddick

2006 Beat Rafael Nadal

2007 Beat Rafael Nadal

2008 Lost to Rafael Nadal

2009 Beat Andy Roddick

2012 Beat Andy Murray

2014 Lost to Novak Djokovic

2015 Lost to Novak Djokovic

2017 Beat Marin Cilic

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

Analysis

Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.

The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement. 

We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment.