AUGUST 30, 2015
KHOBAR, Saudi Arabia
A fire at an oil workers' residential compound in Saudi Arabia on Sunday killed two people and injured 105 others of various nationalities, including some who are in a critical condition, the Civil Defence said on its Twitter account.
National oil company Saudi Aramco [SDABO.UL] said the fire broke out in a basement of the Radium residential compound in Khobar.
"At 05:45 today a fire was reported in the basement of the Radium residential compound in Al Khobar which is leased by Saudi Aramco for its employees," Aramco said in a statement.
On Twitter, the Civil Defence said "Cars and furniture caught fire in the basement of one of the towers, heavy smoke bellowed, obstructing rescue and firefighting operations."
Colonel Ali Al-Qahtani, Eastern Province Civil Defence spokesman said evacuation efforts continue to save people from rooftops. Residents said helicopters were seen flying in the area.
According to Aramco's website, the Radium Residential Complex consists of eight six storey buildings and comprises 486 units.
Saudi Aramco is headquartered in Dhahran and has more than 55,000 employees. Saudi Aramco has not identified the nationalities of its employees in the statement but it is believed that the compound houses expatriates
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UPDATE
At Least 11 Die in Fire at Saudi Aramco Residential Compound
Blaze started early Sunday in the basement of a tower in the eastern city of Khobar
Smoke billows from a
residential complex in Khobar, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday after fire broke
out at the complex used by the state oil giant Saudi Aramco.
Photo:
Associated Press
A large fire at a residential compound of Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil giant killed at least 11 people and injured more than 200 on Sunday, officials said.
Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company in terms of crude production and exports, operates several gated compounds for its expat workforce in the eastern region of the Kingdom.
“Civil Defense and Saudi Aramco fire brigades responded to this incident,” the company said in a statement. “Fire control and evacuation of residents is the focus of responders at this time.”
Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defense said on Twitter that the fire was “under control” and that teams were searching the towers to ensure that they had been fully evacuated.
Photos posted online by the Civil Defense showed columns of black smoke billowing from the building’s windows, it said, as cars and furniture burned and hindered the search and rescue operation.
The cause of the fire was unknown. Authorities will conduct an investigation to determine what triggered it, Saudi Aramco said.
“The company will put all means and available resources to assist the affected families during this difficult time,” it added. Residents of the compound are currently being relocated to other facilities, it said.
The Radium Residential Complex, where the fire started, is a gated community whose eight six-story buildings comprise 486 units, according to Saudi Aramco’s website. The company employs more than 61,000 workers from 77 countries, many of whom reside in company housing.