Two Egyptian children were transferred to a hospital in Al Ain with breathing difficulties as a result of inhaling toxic smokes from the fire that engulfed their family home in the Hili industrial area in Al Ain. The children’s parents were absent when the fire broke out.
The two children, Mustafa Osama Kamal (3 years old), and his sister Maryam (5 years old) were miraculously saved from a certain death by Civil Defense rescue and ambulance teams, who arrived in a record time to the scene. Firefighters endeavored to put out the flames and prevent them from spreading. The children were given first aid before being transferred to a hospital in the city of Al Ain for further treatment.
Major General Nasser Lakhrebani Al Nuaimi, Secretary General of the Office of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, and President of the Higher Committee for Child Protection at the Ministry of Interior, expressed his deep regrets for the incident. He urged parents not to leave their children alone to prevent such unfortunate incidents; wishing both children a speedy recovery.
Moreover, Al Nuaimi called on families to follow-up their children by protecting them from all risks, particularly from domestic accidents during childhood. “Family is the first line of protection the various risks that children may face,” he said; stressing the Ministry of Interior’s keenness to intensify and expand its awareness efforts in this regard, through the ongoing campaigns in collaboration with all community members.
In detail, Brigadier Hamad Ajlan Al Amimi, Director of Al Ain Police Directorate, indicated that the Operations Room received notification at 11:47 am reporting a fire outbreak in one of the buildings. Immediately, Civil Defense, Rescue and Evacuation and ambulance teams rushed to the scene, along with the Investigation Branch members from the Al Jimi police station.
Al Amimi explained that firefighters managed to put out the flames and rescue the children who were immediately rushed to the hospital. “Civil Defense members found the children unconscious in their family home, where they were left unattended and alone when the fire broke out,” he added.
Both children are still undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit and are in critical to minor conditions respectively, as a result of inhaling the toxic fumes from the fire that spread to two adjacent apartments in the building.
Al Amimi indicated that according to investigations, the children’s father was at work when the accident occurred, and the mother had locked the children inside the apartment, to go grocery shopping nearby.
He added: “Preliminary investigations showed that the fire broke out in one of the apartment’s rooms, burned the ceiling and the door, and caused the air-conditioning to explode, before spreading to the rest of the apartment’s rooms. The two children were found unconscious and in critical condition on the kitchen floor”.
Concluding, Al Amimi noted that investigations are underway to determine the circumstances of the fire, lauding the efforts of the neighbors, which contributed to save the children’s lives. He called on parents to supervise their children, and make sure not to leave them alone at home or anywhere else, to maintain their safety and protect them from harm.
