Exclusive: First-hand account of Sharjah fire victim

Among the 150 families of Al Aneeqa Tower in Al Nahda that went up in flames on Tuesday noon, Mithal Osama, the young wife of Osama Sabah, and his three children had the most miraculous escape from the high-rise. 

The Jordanian women and her kids - two-and-a-half-year-old Seba; Khalid, 4; and Lama, 6 - were stranded atop the building's helipad, located above the 33rd floor of the tower before they were airlifted to safety. The husband was constantly on the mobile phone instructing the wife how to conduct herself and co-operate with the helicopter rescue team.

However, initially there was great panic as the crowd that had gathered beneath the building could not see the woman and her kids.

Osama, an architect with a firm in Jebel Ali, guided his family to safety from their 21st floor apartment.

“My wife and children were at home and I went for work in Jebel Ali. She did hear the fire alarm, but ignored it because it has been ringing almost everyday in the recent past. But on continuous ringing, she called me on my mobile phone to find out what was happening in the building. When I contacted the building watchman, he confirmed that it was a real fire and that the building was burning,” Osama said. The husband called Civil Defence personnels and informed them that his family was caught up on the 21st floor.

No sooner than he alerted her than she grabbed the mobile, collected her kids and ran out. “When I opened the door, I could see only dark thick smoke that covered the entire stair case area. I left behind everything in the flat and came out with my three children and the mobile phone. The fire and smoke was spreading from below and I could not walk down the staircase to save my children,” she told 'Emirates24|7'.

“I could not go down from the 21st floor because of the billowing smoke, so I pulled my kids and started climbing up on my husband's advice. He was on the phone asking me to remain calm and reassuring that help would come," she added.
 
She managed to climb up to the helipad area but had to wait for about 20 minutes before they finally landed down safely. She had difficulty understanding civil defence official's instructions as she had to manage the three kids who were frightened and crying.

The husband said, "I explained to her how to lie down on the floor with the children and move to the other side of the building. The fire was confined to one side of the building, but due to heavy wind the heat was coming on to them.

Luckily I managed to reach home in a short time accompanied a civil defence officer to the top of the adjacent building - a 50-floor tower. When we reached the building top, we could see my wife and children waiting on the helipad for help. We were talking over the mobile phones and I was always telling her to remain calm and cool. At last when they landed safely, we could not stop our tears.  

The family has been living in the building since February 2011 and has decided to wait until February 2012 to complete their tenancy contract, before moving out.

“While my friends lost everything in their kitchen and furniture, our flat is in tact. Thanks to God and the Civil Defence team, we are alive," said the wife.

“Our children are now sleeping in the car and we are waiting for the lift to be repaired before returning to our flat on the 25th floor. Electricity and water have been restored to the building, but the lift needs to be repaired,” added Osama.

Nobody was injured in the blaze, said Sharjah Civil Defence.

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