Five injured after explosion at Ajman cafe

Staff taken to hospital for treatment after blast prompts major emergency response

AJMAN, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - JANUARY 23, 2019.

Men clear out items from  Feza Cafe, after a gas cylinder exploded on Tuesday in Feza Cafe in Ajman.

Five workers were injured and taken to Sheikh Khalifa Hospital after suffering moderate to severe injuries in the blast on Tuesday.

The cooking gas cylinder explosion demolished much of the cafe in the Al Rashidiya district. Fire crews and the ambulance service raced to the scene at about noon.

Lt Col Mustafa Sultan Al Ali of Ajman Civil Defence sent a safety warning to business owners after the incident.

“They should not store the gas cylinder inside the kitchen. It must be kept in a separate, well-ventilated box away from the kitchen and heat sources and should not be thrown or rolled down on the floor," he said.

"They also should make sure that the cylinder is sealed after use."


(Photo by Reem Mohammed/The National)

Reporter: SALAM AL AMIR
Section:  NA
Powered by automated translation

Five people were hurt when a gas explosion tore through a cafe in Ajman.

The four members of staff and a gas company worker were taken to hospital after the blast at Feza Cafe in the Al Rashidiya district on Tuesday.

The cafe workers have since been discharged from hospital while the fifth man, who was at the premises to replace an empty gas cylinder, is still receiving treatment.

Residents told of seeing the injured men fleeing the building “bleeding and screaming”.

Cafe owner Saju Suleiman is facing a hefty repair bill of Dh200,000 but is relieved those involved were not more badly hurt.

“It’s fine, the place is insured. What is more important is that all the men came out of it safe,” he said.

Mr Suleiman, 38, said the worker was replacing the gas cylinder at the time of the explosion.

Five workers required hospital treatment after a gas explosion at Feza Cafe in Ajman
Five workers required hospital treatment after a gas explosion at Feza Cafe in Ajman

A Pakistani technician, who was installing surveillance cameras on a nearby building, said that the blast happened as he was climbing up the ladder to finish his work.

“The sound was horrifying. There were a couple of customers right outside the cafe’s door who were not harmed,” he said. “But the men who were inside, about four or five as I recall, ran outside screaming and bleeding.”

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Another resident said the explosion was so loud he thought it was in his own building.

“I was sitting in my room when I heard the terrifying bang. I thought it was the lift crashing down,” said Egyptian Mohammed Mahmoud.

Mohammed Tayye, an Indian tailor in a shop 300 metres from the cafe, said he saw “bleeding men running out of the cafe, then in a few minutes police, civil defence and an ambulance arrived”.

Lt Col Mustafa Sultan Al Ali of Ajman Civil Defence sent a safety note to business owners about the installation and servicing of gas equipment.