ABU DHABI // A fire at an electrical power station in the capital left thousands of residents and businesses without electricity on Tuesday.
Civil Defence took nearly two hours to put out the fire at the power supply station located near Al Falah Plaza shopping centre. Plumes of smoke could be seen billowing high over the city.
Most of the residents and businesses located in the square community between Defence Road and Al Falah Streets on Muroor Road were affected for several hours after the fire broke out at around 3pm on Tuesday afternoon. There were no reported injuries.
Maj Khaled Hassan Al Shehhi, head of rescue and rapid response at Abu Dhabi Police, said preliminary investigations showed that the fire broke out due to electrical short circuit. Our teams managed to control the fire before it could spread to other sections, state news agency Wam reported.
A customer service operator at Abu Dhabi Distribution Company said technicians were working to restore electricity by 7pm but residents said they would be forced to stay with friends and relatives or even book into hotels if the power was not reconnected by nightfall.
“Since electricity was disconnected, my family members already left for Dubai and will come back once power is restored. If not, they will stay in hotel,” Salem Al Rumaithi, an Emirati, who lives in a villa behind the power station said.
“It’s been about two hours, we don’t have power. Without it, how we can stay here?.”
Another Emirati resident, Habiba, said: “It’s been three hours and we don’t have power and I don’t know when it will be restored.
“Let me see for another few hours, if we don’t get power, we have to move somewhere otherwise how we can stay home without electricity?”
Businesses were also suffering. Habib Yousef, who owns a launderette, said the power outage was costing him money.
“Our entire work depends on the electricity so since it’s not going to be restored our business will remain shut.”
anwar@thenational.ae
