Fire Breaks Out in High-End Dubai Hotel Before Fireworks

Unclear whether anyone is hurt
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Dec 31, 2015 12:57 PM CST
Fire Breaks Out in High-End Dubai Hotel Before Fireworks
A fire runs up some 20 stories of a building in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Thursday.   (AP Photo/Jon Gambrell)

Fire broke out Thursday in a hotel near the world's tallest skyscraper in Dubai, just ahead of a massive New Year's fireworks display. It was not immediately clear what caused the fire, which ran up at least 20 stories of the building near the landmark Burj Khalifa, which is 905 yards tall. CNN identifies the burning building as the "high-end" Address hotel. Debris rained down from the hotel as firetrucks raced to the scene. At least 14 people were "slightly injured," the AP reports, and one person had a heart attack. The fire broke out about two hours before midnight, when the nearby fireworks display was set to begin. Tens of thousands of people had gathered in the area ahead of the extravaganza, and officials in the United Arab Emirates city said the show would go on as scheduled. (More Dubai stories.)

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