Flames and smoke tore through two well-known Jeddah malls Saturday, leaving behind damage and destruction of at least SR7 million in two separate incidents, authorities said. A huge cloud of smoke from an Armstrong tile ceiling in the mall, with no flames seen, billowed over the halls and shops inside the first mall in Al-Suliymaniya District, said Col. Muhammad Al-Ghamdi, chief of the Jeddah Civil Defense. Ten firefighting units were dispatched after the smoke on the roof and inside the building was reported, he said. The firefighter evacuated the mall which was packed with shoppers when the smoke started to sweep through it, he said. No body was hurt, he said. The second fire gutted a traditional mall on Prince Miteb Street in Mushrifah District, he said. The fire was caused by a bakery in the mall, he said. Safety precautions in both malls have significantly reduced the damages, he said.
