SHARJAH // A fire in an industrial warehouse in Sharjah has killed one worker with five men escaping the blaze, according to witnesses.
Civil defence officials and the police have yet to confirm the death. Emergency workers and residents said the fire started at 4am in the Everest Industrial Company warehouse. They heard a loud explosion before seeing the fire, said workers from nearby car and television shops.
Workers in the area saw the five men escape. "The explosion was so loud that we came running out," said Mudassar, a Pakistani electrician who said one worker died in the blaze.
Warehouses and workshops in the vicinity have been closed and evacuated, a civil defence officer said. The fire was under control and there was no danger of it spreading, he said. There was no confirmation on the cause of the fire.
The Everest Industrial Company is located in a narrow lane in Sharjah's Industrial area number six. "The workers were sleeping inside and this is not permitted," said a fireman, who did not want to give his name.
Plumes of black smoke continued to spew out of the blackened warehouse at least eight hours after the initial explosion.
