Abdul Rahman Al-Ali Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – Civil Defense rescue personnel evacuated a three-story building in Jeddah Friday morning after a fire broke out in one of the apartments. Residents said people living on the second floor smelled something burning, but smoke engulfed the entire building in a matter of minutes before they could find out the cause of the smell. There was no fire alarm in the building and someone had to go around knocking on apartment doors to wake up people sleeping inside. According to Lt. Col. Saeed Sarhan, spokesman for the Makkah Region Civil Defense, firefighters used special equipment to suck out smoke, which spread all over the place. People trapped inside the building were evacuated to the roof. “It was the result of a small fire in one of the apartments. The fire didn't spread to nearby apartments, but the amount of smoke produced was so huge it permeated the entire building,” said Sarhan. Investigators are trying to find out the cause of the fire, he added.
