Emergency workers had flames under control at one of the world's tallest residential towers in Dubai, after flames engulfed part of the skyscraper and sent chunks of debris plummeting down to the street below.
Cooling operations have begun at the tower, Gulf News reported. No injuries have been reported, according to Al Arabiya.
The blaze took place at the Torch Tower, located in the popular Marina neighborhood.
“Dubai Civil Defense has successfully evacuated the Torch Tower and is working to bring the fire under control,” Dubai’s official media office said in a tweet.
It is the second major fire to engulf the 86-story tower, which caught fire in early 2015. There were no major casualties reported in that blaze.
An Associated Press journalist near the scene early Friday said more than 40 floors of the high-rise tower appeared to be engulfed in flames on one side of the building. Residents of the building could be seen crying with several saying the fire broke just after 1 a.m.
Dubai police cordoned off the area around the building, keeping people about a block away from scene.
Fires have affected several skyscrapers in the United Arab Emirates, including a towering inferno that engulfed a 63-story luxury hotel in Dubai on New Year’s Eve in 2016.
Building and safety experts have cited a popular type of cladding covering the buildings that can be highly flammable.
A devastating tower fire in London in June killed at least 80 people and prompted Britain to order more thorough testing on the cladding systems of its towers.
Follow Melanie Eversley on Twitter: @melanieeversley
Contributing: Associated Press
