31/12/2015 BBC News at Six


31/12/2015

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A major fire has broken out in hotel near a planned New Year's Eve

:00:00.:00:12.

One eyewitness told the BBC that debris was flying everywhere,

:00:13.:00:16.

An enormous clean-up operation is underway after Storm Frank

:00:17.:00:21.

brought flooding misery to thousands of people.

:00:22.:00:27.

The Labour MP Simon Danczuk has been suspended from the party

:00:28.:00:29.

following allegations he sent explicit text messages

:00:30.:00:31.

Also in the next hour, happy new year, as cities around

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London prepares for a midnight fireworks display on the River

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Thames, opposite the Houses of Parliament.

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But planned celebrations in Brussels have been cancelled and police have

:00:46.:00:48.

arrested six people in connection with an alleged plot to target

:00:49.:00:51.

And veteran actress Barbara Windsor is made a dame

:00:52.:00:59.

The EastEnders and Carry On star was recognised for services

:01:00.:01:03.

You go "why me", and I just say thank you and I'll do my best to be

:01:04.:01:13.

Good afternoon and welcome to BBC News.

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A fire has broken out in a building near do by's massive New Year's Eve

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fireworks display, just hours before the fireworks display is scheduled

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to get under way. Nina Warhurst has been following the story. What do we

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know? We found out about the fire in the last half-hour, the pictures

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showing a fire that has spread over 20 or more stories of a hotel which

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is called the Address Hotel in central divide, not far from the

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Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest skyscraper. They were preparing for

:02:21.:02:28.

the New Year's Eve fireworks, due to start in the next couple of hours.

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We have seen a number of images saying that debris has been falling

:02:33.:02:36.

all around and that emergency services are on hand in evacuating

:02:37.:02:40.

the scene all around. There will be a major operation to make sure

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people are kept safe on the street waiting for the firework display. At

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the moment, we do not know what caused the fire and we have no news

:02:50.:02:54.

of any casualties. Looking at the images, it is difficult to avoid

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comparisons with other disasters involving skyscrapers. The fire

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looks to have got set in various parts of the hotel, not just in one.

:03:05.:03:09.

Yes, what strikes you is that it has spread across more than 20 stories.

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If people are making links between the fireworks, saying that could

:03:15.:03:17.

have something to do with it, that has not been confirmed by anybody at

:03:18.:03:22.

the scene. But it is not a small fire and you can see that already it

:03:23.:03:25.

has spread to different parts of the hotel. We know there has been a

:03:26.:03:30.

major operation to evacuate people from the hotel and from around the

:03:31.:03:34.

scene as debris continues to fall. Thank you for the moment. I want to

:03:35.:03:42.

speak to someone who was outside the tower and saw what was going on.

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That is right. When were you first aware there was a problem? We were

:03:49.:03:52.

outside the Burj Khalifa hotel, waiting in line for the fireworks

:03:53.:03:59.

display, myself and my son and daughter. Suddenly we saw a huge

:04:00.:04:05.

black plume of smoke coming between the Burj Khalifa tower and the other

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hotel. Within seconds, we saw an orange flame and then the flames

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burst out really big. Before we knew it, the whole of the Address Hotel

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was covered in orange flames, and the fire was really burning quick

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and fast. It was horrible to see it. Especially knowing the hotel would

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have been full for the New Year celebrations. We are talking about a

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5-star hotel. How big? It is quite a big tower. I think it is a good 20

:04:43.:04:53.

stories, I believe. What about the rescue, the Fire Services? To be

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honest, we heard sirens coming quite quick. I think they were under

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control very, very quickly. But to be honest, the fire took hold so

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fast it was quite amazing. It went so fast, the whole tower engulfed.

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But as I say, the Fire Service and security were pretty quick at

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getting things under control, I would say. Any idea how it started?

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Obviously, the fireworks were scheduled. Any indication they were

:05:34.:05:38.

somehow to blame? No idea, there is no word around at the moment

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suggesting how this was started. I must be honest, I was extremely

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nervous, because prior to this happening, we were very worried

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because there was extra security this year. Nobody got too close to

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anything, unless you paid for seating at the restaurant. We

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thought, well, there seemed to be extra security, I wonder why. When

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this happened I was very quick at saying to my daughter, we are going

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to leave, get out of this area, away from the Burj Khalifa tower, in case

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there is some situation we don't know. I intended to get out of the

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area pretty quick, through the crowds, which isn't easy. People

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were panicking as well, running across the street, pushing you over

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to get away as well. Michelle, you are using very careful language, but

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obviously when you see a skyscraper in flames, it does have rather

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horrific reminders of previous disasters. Of course, of course.

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This is exact Lee how I felt. I thought, crikey, what is going on

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with the world we are living in at the moment. The Paris situation and

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different things going on, you can't help but worry what could happen

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next. When I saw it happen so quick, the first reaction was, I need to

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get my children and get out of this area, get my kids out of this area,

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and that is what I did. Michelle, I am grateful for your time. That was

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a tourist who saw the blaze. I can speak now to David, who was staying

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at a nearby hotel. What are you looking at at the moment? At the

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moment I'm in the middle of the Burj Khalifa area just across the

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fountain of the Burj Khalifa. I am here waiting for the fireworks at

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the Burj Khalifa. Suddenly, half an hour ago, the building just across

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from me just burst into flames. It started from the lower level. What I

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can see right now, the fire is even getting bigger. I can tell you right

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now, I think the firefighters really hard to handle the burning, the

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fire, because it is spreading everywhere. It started from the

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lower levels and now it is going up. I concede now the fire burning in

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the hotel. According to people around me this is one of the very

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famous hotels in downtown Jew by. If you could just hang on the line

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for a moment. I want to explain that what we are looking at is a blaze at

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the hotel called the Address. It is described as a sophisticated hotel,

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providing top 5-star accommodation. There is an infinity pool, a 24-hour

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gym, panoramic holistic spa, and a restaurant on the top floor as well.

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There are seven different restaurants on the site. We are

:09:30.:09:34.

looking at a huge area in terms of guest rooms and we can just show you

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a close-up of the complex. And that is the scale of what we are looking

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at and the fire taking hold of an entire side of that hotel. One of

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the things people were talking about was the debris coming down onto the

:09:56.:10:00.

street. Did you see that? Can you repeat the question? There were

:10:01.:10:07.

reports of a lot of debris coming down on people below. Did you see

:10:08.:10:13.

that? Yes. I can see a lot of debris coming down from the building and it

:10:14.:10:17.

is getting bigger and bigger. It is quite scary, to be honest, at the

:10:18.:10:23.

moment. The problem is the people inside the Burj Khalifa cannot move

:10:24.:10:31.

anywhere. All of the security says we cannot move anywhere. Now people

:10:32.:10:38.

are overlooking that building and it is quite scary because the fire is

:10:39.:10:47.

getting bigger and wider. You say that firefighters are at the scene,

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but looking at the flames, and we are looking at a local broadcast at

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the moment, they appear to be getting worse by the minute. Yes,

:10:56.:11:03.

yes. I think all the firefighters are already there but I think they

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have difficulty to tackle the huge blaze that happens in this building

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at the moment. Because I can see now, where I stand now is just

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across inside the Burj Khalifa area, so the fire is just behind that area

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in one of the famous tourist places in Dubai. New Year's Eve, it is

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packed, ready for the fireworks. There have already been increased

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security and this would be an area considered a threat for some. Yes,

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yes. We are not sure about the fireworks, is it still going to

:11:52.:11:57.

happen or not, because of this. But security said we cannot move

:11:58.:12:00.

anywhere and we have to stay here at the moment. Many people are here

:12:01.:12:07.

inside the complex at the moment. Described the mood in the downtown

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area before the fire. Thousands of people getting ready to celebrate.

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Yes. Before, the mood was very nice. People were cheering, happy,

:12:20.:12:26.

waiting, queueing in the Burj Khalifa area. And since nothing

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happened, everything was under control. Security everywhere, police

:12:34.:12:42.

everywhere. I can guarantee it was smooth earlier. So now it is

:12:43.:12:47.

happening, people start to worry. But again, like I said, no one can

:12:48.:12:55.

move from here. And the Address Hotel, what can you tell us about

:12:56.:13:01.

that? It is a huge complex, isn't it? Yes, it is a very huge complex.

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It is a very famous hotel and usually during New Year 's time, at

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at least 90% occupancy from what I read so far. It is a very famous

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place, and very close to the Burj Khalifa area in Dubai, so many

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tourists. It is always packed with tourists, the boulevard, especially

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during this time. What is the weather like at the moment? Some

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reports of strong wind which is hoping to spread the flames. Right

:13:41.:13:47.

now, the weather is nice. It is not too cold. That is the thing that I

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can describe so far. Obviously, with skyscrapers like this, and it is

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home to the world's tallest skyscraper, this is something that

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firefighters will have trained for. I am sorry, I can't hear you. So far

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what I am seeing right now, the fire is still burning and is still

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spreading to the left side of the building. And it keeps going up. So

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I have no idea. How are they going to save the people inside? Hopefully

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they can keep everybody safe. We can see from where I stand, I cannot see

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how they deal with the fire. We are behind and inside the complex area

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of Burj Khalifa. We were talking about a 5-star hotel. There are

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obviously balconies there. Are they balconies where people have

:15:00.:15:03.

barbecues in holiday time and things like that. I don't think they are

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allowed to do that in a building like this. But according to people

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standing beside me when I asked about the building, usually

:15:18.:15:25.

sometimes the fireworks before the big ones coming started from that

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area. But again, I am not sure about that. He said they usually have a

:15:29.:15:34.

little show from that side of the building and then it goes to the big

:15:35.:15:39.

building, the Burj Khalifa, but I am not sure again. Looking at the live

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pictures, these are scenes you looking at, we are getting it from

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local television and they are breaking into their regular

:15:49.:15:53.

programme with the story, but it was quite clear that the fire appears to

:15:54.:15:57.

have taken hold but there is still electricity in the building, so

:15:58.:16:00.

there is still a chance for people to get out, presumably. Yes. How

:16:01.:16:13.

fast the fire built up to the upper level of the building, that is the

:16:14.:16:17.

thing we worried about very much. We are not sure. I haven't read any

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news about any people, any victims or anything so far. And just

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explain, people when they hear of stories like this, they turn on

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their television to find out what is going on. Can you explain what your

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understanding is off what has happened in the last hour since this

:16:38.:16:47.

happened? Actually, it happened out of the blue. No one expected it was

:16:48.:16:52.

going to happen. We are in the mood of getting ready for the massive

:16:53.:16:56.

firework display from the Burj Khalifa. And suddenly someone

:16:57.:17:01.

shouted and we looked to the right side of the building when the fire

:17:02.:17:08.

just broke out. Everybody started to panic around here. They were taking

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photos, videos and everything, but there is nothing much you can do

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inside here because we cannot move. We just stay here so far, just

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watching the fire happening until now. Inevitably, people will be

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looking at this and wondering if we are looking at an accident, but

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obviously two hours before a huge firework display scheduled to get

:17:40.:17:42.

under way, that is where they are looking at the moment. Yes, indeed.

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Because they were about to be ready for the firework display, so I am

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not sure whether they are still doing it. People are quite calm at

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the moment, no one seems to panic. Everybody just stays calm and

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waiting. Many families, young kids also here. And I believe the

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security handled it well so far, working very hard to make sure

:18:16.:18:18.

people are calm and not panicked in this complex. Stay safe. Thank you

:18:19.:18:26.

very much for giving us that latest information on this fire. My

:18:27.:18:33.

colleague Nina Warhurst is here in the studio and we are monitoring

:18:34.:18:38.

these pictures. It does look at the moment as though the fire is taking

:18:39.:18:40.

hold but we still don't know what caused it. It looks to me, even in

:18:41.:18:46.

the time I have been sat here, the fire has spread to the other side of

:18:47.:18:51.

the hotel. We do not know what caused it, we have no picture so far

:18:52.:18:54.

as to whether there are any casualties. Dubai At this time of

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year is a popular holiday destination. Lots of people from the

:19:02.:19:04.

UK will be heading there for some winter sun. We heard from a British

:19:05.:19:08.

tourists earlier saying there was a party atmosphere in downtown Dubai.

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People were looking forward to one of the world's biggest fireworks

:19:16.:19:19.

displays. There will be people questioning whether the fireworks

:19:20.:19:22.

were the cause of the blaze, although that has not been confirmed

:19:23.:19:27.

yet. For people who have been there on holiday, looking forward to a

:19:28.:19:30.

party night out, a celebration, it must be terrifying. Two of the

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eyewitnesses have said how good the emergency services have been in

:19:37.:19:40.

clearing the area around the hotel, which looks like there has been

:19:41.:19:45.

debris falling over the past 45 minutes or so. Terrifying for people

:19:46.:19:51.

there. Lots of reaction to this on Twitter, people speculating. Dubai

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Media office have tweeted saying that the fire started on the 20th

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floor, and at that stage it was outside the tower only. From these

:20:03.:20:06.

pictures, it is clear that it has spread very fast. It also appears to

:20:07.:20:11.

have spread not only above the 20th floor, but also below, because it

:20:12.:20:14.

looks at though there were flames near the brown level -- near the

:20:15.:20:22.

ground level as well. Yes, it has spread all the way across and down.

:20:23.:20:26.

Interesting that the lights are still on, so you would hope that

:20:27.:20:29.

people are able to make their way out if they are still trapped inside

:20:30.:20:34.

the building. Because the lights are still on at the moment. But as you

:20:35.:20:39.

say, it looks like it is engulfing the building. We knew that half an

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hour ago it was across at least 20 floors and it looks like it has

:20:44.:20:48.

spread even further. If you are just joining us, you are looking at

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distressing pictures of a huge fire that has engulfed the Address Hotel

:20:53.:21:00.

in downtown Dubai. This is just hours before a large firework

:21:01.:21:03.

display was due to start to herald the New Year. It is now 10:20pm in

:21:04.:21:12.

Dubai. Still more than an hour before the fireworks were scheduled

:21:13.:21:15.

to go off, but people we have been talking to are suggesting that the

:21:16.:21:19.

fireworks would normally be in the area where this fire is now taking

:21:20.:21:25.

hold. It is just near the Burj Khalifa Tower, the world's largest

:21:26.:21:31.

building. Reports from eyewitnesses, some of whom we have spoken to,

:21:32.:21:36.

saying that debris, blazing debris is now falling onto streets below,

:21:37.:21:40.

where a large number of fire crews are gathered as they try to tackle

:21:41.:21:45.

the blaze. But as you can see, power is still on in the building, so the

:21:46.:21:50.

hope is that people inside will be able to find their way to safety.

:21:51.:21:58.

But let's talk now to another eyewitness who joins me on the line.

:21:59.:22:02.

John, tell me what you are looking at. Hello, I am at a racecourse just

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outside of central Dubai. 10,000 people here tonight, a sell-out.

:22:14.:22:22.

About 40 minutes ago, the Burj Khalifa was lit up. Everybody

:22:23.:22:29.

cheered. As they did, you could see flames coming from next door. It

:22:30.:22:34.

caused chaos here. Some people were running, some screaming, not sure

:22:35.:22:37.

what was going on. In these times, you don't know what is going on.

:22:38.:22:43.

Security tried to calm us down. To be fair to the organisers here,

:22:44.:22:47.

nothing was disrupted on stage. They carried on as normal and tried to

:22:48.:22:50.

encourage people inside to enjoy the night. Word got round that a fire

:22:51.:22:55.

had started in the building next door to the Burj Khalifa, known as

:22:56.:23:00.

the Address, a combination of residential and a hotel. Eventually,

:23:01.:23:04.

you could start seeing the flames coming from the hotel from where we

:23:05.:23:09.

are. What we are seeing now, it seems to have calmed down a little.

:23:10.:23:16.

At one moment you could see the fireworks, lots of sparks from the

:23:17.:23:21.

building, lots of flames as well. Just looking at the Burj Khalifa, it

:23:22.:23:25.

is lit up, ready for the big firework display tonight. It is just

:23:26.:23:33.

plumed in smoke. The smoke is covering the skyline, creating this

:23:34.:23:37.

fog and mist across the skyline. And the fear is that this fire will

:23:38.:23:42.

spread to other buildings, because as we watch, it is getting bigger

:23:43.:23:46.

and the bits of debris, much of it on fire, is spreading to other

:23:47.:23:52.

buildings. We have been told that the whole of the central downtown

:23:53.:23:57.

area, round by the fountains on the Burj Khalifa, has now been

:23:58.:24:04.

completely evacuated. As you can imagine, the Address Hotel was due

:24:05.:24:08.

to be part of the huge fireworks display. Obviously a lot of

:24:09.:24:11.

pyrotechnics lined up across the building. Probably the images you

:24:12.:24:16.

are seeing at home, with the fire going to the top of the Address is a

:24:17.:24:20.

commendation of the fireworks and pyrotechnics going up in flames. We

:24:21.:24:24.

are hearing from the civil defence official who has been speaking to a

:24:25.:24:29.

TV station that there are no injuries, which is great news,

:24:30.:24:35.

obviously. Also saying the New Year celebrations will proceed. That

:24:36.:24:37.

would seem out of step with what we are looking at because it looks like

:24:38.:24:43.

a major inferno that we are seeing. That doesn't surprise me. They seem

:24:44.:24:47.

to just go on here regardless. Like I say, here, there are 10,000 people

:24:48.:24:54.

here, a complete sell-out, huge event, one of the first times they

:24:55.:24:59.

have hosted international DJs on New Year's Eve and hosted one of the

:25:00.:25:03.

biggest events outside of the downtown area. We are being told to

:25:04.:25:06.

enjoy the night, everything is going on as normal. I must admit that I am

:25:07.:25:13.

surprised that is still the plan for downtown, after hearing they have

:25:14.:25:20.

completely evacuated the area by the Burj Khalifa and the Address. But

:25:21.:25:23.

from what I can see now, there do not seem to be any flames. There do

:25:24.:25:31.

not seem to be any sparks or fireworks coming from the building.

:25:32.:25:36.

From what we have been told, firefighters are trying to deal with

:25:37.:25:40.

the situation. There were rumours that the actual Burj Khalifa was on

:25:41.:25:44.

fire. I can guarantee that from here I can see very, very clearly that is

:25:45.:25:49.

not the case. The reason some people are getting confused is because of

:25:50.:25:54.

the plume of smoke covering a good quarter of the building. Looking at

:25:55.:26:02.

these images, it is the worst scenario and many other images from

:26:03.:26:06.

previous disasters spring to mind. You are looking at a tower block on

:26:07.:26:14.

fire and seemingly out. It is a huge tower block. Right next to the Burj

:26:15.:26:19.

Khalifa, very prominent in the skyline. We just pray that if there

:26:20.:26:26.

is anybody in there, they are out safely. It doesn't look good from

:26:27.:26:31.

here. The smoke is billowing out of the building. It is causing this fog

:26:32.:26:41.

and smoke right across the skyline of Dubai. John, thank you. That was

:26:42.:26:48.

an eyewitness. You are looking at images of the Address, a 5-star

:26:49.:26:54.

hotel in the Downs town district, -- downtown district. We will have full

:26:55.:26:58.

details. Reeta Chakrabarti will be here with a bulletin. We will now

:26:59.:27:01.

look at the weather with Louise Lear. I am sorry, we are going to

:27:02.:27:10.

join our colleagues at BBC world. We welcome viewers on the BBC News

:27:11.:27:14.

Channel in the UK. We are watching the fire in Dubai. It has taken hold

:27:15.:27:25.

of a 60 story luxury hotel, the Address in downtown Dubai. We are

:27:26.:27:31.

showing live pictures of what is happening. This is very close to the

:27:32.:27:36.

Burj Khalifa, which was due to be the focus of a massive and

:27:37.:27:39.

spectacular firework display and a couple of hours. Obviously a lot of

:27:40.:27:44.

fireworks being stored but we have heard from an official that it is

:27:45.:27:48.

believed the fire you are witnessing took hold on the 20th floor of the

:27:49.:27:57.

Address. With us on the line, Michelle, who is in Dubai. Remind

:27:58.:28:06.

us, when were you aware that something was wrong? We were keeping

:28:07.:28:17.

an ion the time. It was a beautiful night, a clear evening, lovely with

:28:18.:28:20.

everything lit up, the hotel was lit up. We saw a black plume of smoke

:28:21.:28:27.

coming between the Burj Khalifa tower and the Address Hotel. All of

:28:28.:28:36.

a sudden we saw an orange flame and within minutes, a couple of minutes,

:28:37.:28:41.

there was loads of flames, orange flames. The fire really started to

:28:42.:28:47.

take hold, and before we knew it, the whole of the Address was getting

:28:48.:28:55.

gutted and literally completely on fire from where we were standing. It

:28:56.:29:02.

really was bad. And Michelle, you are close to the scene with your son

:29:03.:29:07.

and daughter, you see the fire take hold, tell us how you reacted. To be

:29:08.:29:13.

honest, I reacted like a mother would, I think, even though my son

:29:14.:29:20.

and daughter are 22 and 25 years old, I quickly said to them, you

:29:21.:29:25.

know what, I want to get you safe. We need to get out of here. My son

:29:26.:29:34.

wanted to go back and get his car, actually from an underground car

:29:35.:29:39.

park. I said, no, you are not, we are not doing that. We are going to

:29:40.:29:45.

get out of this area. I wanted to leave the area before everybody else

:29:46.:29:49.

started to leave, because there were thousands of people there and I did

:29:50.:29:52.

not want to leave it too late in case there was more of a problem. We

:29:53.:29:58.

have viewers watching the story developed, and it is important to

:29:59.:30:03.

let people know, this would have been an incredibly crowded area, and

:30:04.:30:04.

getting more crowded by the minute. I am not sure what time it was,

:30:05.:30:14.

because I didn't have a watch on me, but, yeah, more and more people were

:30:15.:30:19.

turning up all the time, for the New Year's celebration, they were

:30:20.:30:22.

arriving, so the streets were getting crowded, there was a lot

:30:23.:30:27.

people about. Michelle... As we were leaving, towards the end, people

:30:28.:30:30.

were running in all directions and I got knocked over a couple of times

:30:31.:30:37.

actually, trying to leave the area. Michelle, I am very glad you got

:30:38.:30:46.

yourself, your son and daughter to safety. The incident began, and

:30:47.:30:52.

painting the picture for us in Dubai, we are going to bring in Nina

:30:53.:30:59.

Wadhurst who is watching these terrifying pictures. This is the

:31:00.:31:05.

address hotel is really well-known, people would be flocking for New

:31:06.:31:08.

Year's Eve. That is right. As you know Dubai is a popular destination

:31:09.:31:12.

at this time of year, for people who live in colder climate, going there

:31:13.:31:16.

to get some winter sun, and as you mention, it would have been

:31:17.:31:20.

thousands of people in that area of down town due by getting ready for

:31:21.:31:26.

the fireworks supposed to start in a couple of hour, the hotel is very

:31:27.:31:33.

popular, it is five-star, a spa facility, people who will have spent

:31:34.:31:38.

a lot of money, one can only imagine the terse very that has met them

:31:39.:31:44.

there, and on the ground. We have seen several eyewitness can't,

:31:45.:31:46.

photographs on Twitter, debris falling, which is still lit, falling

:31:47.:31:51.

from the building, and we started monitoring these pictures probably

:31:52.:31:57.

an hour ago, didn't we, at that time it seems cob confined more on the

:31:58.:32:01.

left hand side, in that time we have seen it spread higher and higher and

:32:02.:32:05.

reach further down to the ground. Interesting that some the lights

:32:06.:32:09.

seem to be on so one would hope if there are people still inside there

:32:10.:32:12.

will be a way of them finding their way out. We were hearing from

:32:13.:32:16.

Michelle a few minutes ago, the sirens were on, within a couple of

:32:17.:32:19.

minute, a fast reaction, I think we can go to the scene now, speak to

:32:20.:32:26.

Devi. Can you hear me? Can you tell us where you are and what you can

:32:27.:32:36.

see? Hi, yes. At the moment I am still inside the Burj Lhalifa area,

:32:37.:32:43.

where thousands of people are still waiting for the massive fireworks

:32:44.:32:47.

display in two hours, but then suddenly it happened like, I think,

:32:48.:32:55.

45 minutes ago, where, when the building started on fire, and at the

:32:56.:33:00.

moment, the fire is not as big as before. I can see the steel burning,

:33:01.:33:11.

coming out from the building and I think the firefighters are doing

:33:12.:33:15.

their job, trying to reduce the fire, but still I can see from where

:33:16.:33:21.

I stand now, the fire is still on, on the middle of the building, and

:33:22.:33:27.

the upper level, as well. But at the lower part of the building, what I

:33:28.:33:33.

can see from where I am standing, it is getting reduced. The fire is not

:33:34.:33:40.

as big as before. So, that is the thing I can describe it for you at

:33:41.:33:47.

the moment. And I can also say that I think it security and the police

:33:48.:33:52.

here, inside the Burj Lhalifa was very good to handle the situation S

:33:53.:33:59.

people are so far... We cannot go anywhere, any way, so we have to

:34:00.:34:06.

wait inside, and around this area is already sealed. No-one can get out

:34:07.:34:11.

at the moment, because I have been, it is, they are still dealing with

:34:12.:34:15.

the fire. That is all I can describe it at the moment to you. So Devi, to

:34:16.:34:21.

be clear, have you been given advice by your hotel, about what to do? No,

:34:22.:34:31.

I am not saying that. Where I am standing, I can see clearly about

:34:32.:34:36.

the building on fire, but I am not saying -- staying in the hotel.

:34:37.:34:42.

Where I am standing is quite far, it is just across the building, across

:34:43.:34:50.

the, if I can describe, there is a big lake, around the Burj Lhalifa

:34:51.:34:53.

where a million people are standing there, here, to wait for the fire

:34:54.:35:02.

display. So far it is like this. Devi for those watching round the

:35:03.:35:08.

world, this is an area, Dubai is known for its fireworks, this is a

:35:09.:35:14.

place where people would have come specifically for tonight's

:35:15.:35:20.

celebrations. Yes, indeed. You know, many people in the world know how

:35:21.:35:26.

massive the fire display in Burj Lhalifa, everybody likes here, is so

:35:27.:35:32.

excited to be honest, earlier, to wait for the fireworks, so we didn't

:35:33.:35:38.

expect that this thing can happen, because the position of the building

:35:39.:35:41.

is just not far from the Burj Lhalifa. It is just right across the

:35:42.:35:49.

Burj Lhalifa, and it is a very famous popular destination for

:35:50.:35:52.

tourist, especially during this New tourist, especially during this New

:35:53.:35:58.

Year time. I believe there are many tourists staying in the hotel. That

:35:59.:36:04.

is a very famous and posh hotel, from what I know so far. Down town

:36:05.:36:12.

Dubai is at the centre of Dubai. You are watching this obviously in Dubai

:36:13.:36:16.

and I mean we have noticed it seems the lights are on in part of the

:36:17.:36:23.

hotel, but there must be a lot of connoisseur for people trapped

:36:24.:36:27.

inside there? Yes, indeed, but so far what I can see, from where I

:36:28.:36:36.

stand now, thousands of people, also still waiting calmly, and I can say

:36:37.:36:41.

they are quite calm, no-one is panic, no-one is screaming, or

:36:42.:36:47.

nothing, so I think leer the people, handle it, handle it pretty well,

:36:48.:36:53.

they don't seem worried, at the beginning of course they started

:36:54.:36:59.

taking videos, photos and telling everybody, send them, you see the

:37:00.:37:04.

fire, when the fire broke out, but now, so tar they are quite calm,

:37:05.:37:10.

because so many kids, young children, baby, you know, just

:37:11.:37:14.

around me, to wait for the fire display, so I am not sure they still

:37:15.:37:19.

are doing their fireworks, so we will still have to wait. Wait.

:37:20.:37:25.

Very glad you are watching in from a place of safety, thank you very much

:37:26.:37:29.

for being with us here on BBC News, as we follow this story, and watch,

:37:30.:37:34.

we know the fire crews are at the seen, but much of the hotel there

:37:35.:37:42.

still on fire, with me also is our Arab affairs editor Seb Stan Usher.

:37:43.:37:46.

This is a landmark complex, it is so close to the Burj Lhalifa. Yes the

:37:47.:37:52.

whole area, the hotel itself is a landmark area, it is a 63 storey

:37:53.:37:57.

building. It has been there before the Burj Lhalifa rose, in the past

:37:58.:38:01.

couple of years, the Dubai mall is next to it as well, so this is the

:38:02.:38:07.

very heart of Dubai, in a sense the heart, you know, of the modern Arab

:38:08.:38:11.

world, this is a skyline in Dubai that didn't exist 20 or 30 years

:38:12.:38:16.

ago, so just the sight of seeing a building like this on fire, and the

:38:17.:38:23.

speed with which it caught fire, has horrified people, I mean we

:38:24.:38:27.

literally had no, not a clue, so far, of what might have caused it.

:38:28.:38:30.

We have here and nothing from officials on that, I mean the only

:38:31.:38:35.

thing we have heard, is from a civil defence official who said there are

:38:36.:38:38.

no casualties but I think no-one can be sure of that whatsoever at the

:38:39.:38:44.

moment, I think that is something we cannot a really think, I mean one

:38:45.:38:47.

would hope that is the case, but this is a residential block as well

:38:48.:38:52.

as a hotel, the fire from the pictures that we first saw seems to

:38:53.:38:58.

have gone very very quickly up, at least 20 storeys, and it seems to

:38:59.:39:05.

have happened very quickly, I mean, I caught sight of it about 50

:39:06.:39:10.

minutes ago now. Nothing before. And the picture... Were appearing,

:39:11.:39:16.

showing the fire already engulfing most of the building. There had been

:39:17.:39:19.

no build up to this. It wasn't a fire started. People noticed it,

:39:20.:39:24.

starting to take pictures. That is what we were hearing from

:39:25.:39:27.

eyewitness, Michelle said she saw black smoke and a flame and suddenly

:39:28.:39:31.

there were flames all over I have spoken to one or two people in

:39:32.:39:34.

Dubai, that is what is worrying them the most, that and the fact not just

:39:35.:39:38.

people in there but as you were hearing, from the contributor just a

:39:39.:39:41.

moment a I mean there were a huge number of people who were gathered

:39:42.:39:47.

in that area, they had closed the area off hours ago, because of the

:39:48.:39:53.

numbers who were there. Obviously, there are security, there are

:39:54.:39:57.

ambulances, because of the New Year's celebration in any case, one

:39:58.:40:01.

would hope that would be a help. Hearing from isn't any real

:40:02.:40:04.

panening, I have heard it second-hand from one of the people

:40:05.:40:13.

there they have been evacuated. There has been from an Rab TV

:40:14.:40:16.

station which is broadcasting many of the pictures we are seeing, --

:40:17.:40:20.

Arab, they have said the understand is the fireworks will still go

:40:21.:40:26.

ahead, from what I am hear ocean the ground, people say that is unlikely

:40:27.:40:29.

as the situation is. I think officially it might be quite a long

:40:30.:40:35.

time before we really get any sense of what has happened. To remind

:40:36.:40:39.

viewers here in the UK and round the world, what we are looking at is

:40:40.:40:45.

still the developing scene at near the Burj Lhalifa in Dubai, flames

:40:46.:40:56.

have taken hold, across many storeys of the luxury hotel, the address

:40:57.:41:01.

downTown Nina Warhurst is monitoring it for us. We should explain that

:41:02.:41:09.

this is a magnet today, for what was supposed to be truly spectacular

:41:10.:41:14.

firework display, Dubai was Prout proud of this. Under an

:41:15.:41:19.

hour-and-a-half, they were due to be enjoying one of the world's biggest

:41:20.:41:22.

fireworks display, people will have fireworks display, people will have

:41:23.:41:25.

gone there specifically for New Year's Eve, because the fireworks

:41:26.:41:28.

display that is so famous, it is popular, we have heard from

:41:29.:41:34.

eyewitnesses there who said on the ground it was already tense, because

:41:35.:41:38.

security services like in many cities round the world, ore New Year

:41:39.:41:43.

security was tight, there were many checks going in so already people

:41:44.:41:47.

were feeling tense, and then, what started off as a plume of smoke

:41:48.:41:52.

developed very quickly, some comfort, hearing from now I have

:41:53.:41:56.

heard from four, maybe five different eyewitness, they have all

:41:57.:42:01.

really praised and the speed of the evacuation, the efficiency of

:42:02.:42:04.

emergency service, they feel that the situation is under control but

:42:05.:42:07.

looking at the picture... Of the last hour or so it does look like

:42:08.:42:11.

the flames have spread to the other side the hotel. We knew early on it

:42:12.:42:16.

has spread over 20 storey, and now it looks like it has engulfed the

:42:17.:42:23.

middle section of the hotel, and it is a mix, it is residents as well,

:42:24.:42:27.

people who live there. There have been some reports there are no

:42:28.:42:30.

casualty, one wonders whether that can be the case when it spread so

:42:31.:42:35.

quickly. Let us get more from Dubai and the BBC's correspondent Marcus

:42:36.:42:39.

George. Marcus, tell us a bit about what you are able to see. Yes, it is

:42:40.:42:45.

very clear at the moment, I am not in that particular air area of

:42:46.:42:50.

Dubai, according to what I have been reading onnen the Dubai Government

:42:51.:43:03.

media officer, Dubai is preparing for New Year's Eve celebration and

:43:04.:43:08.

Dubai being Dubai is having a monumental celebration here, which

:43:09.:43:13.

started in that area of the Burj Lhalifa, very near by the Address

:43:14.:43:20.

Hotel many people were gathering to be there, and this fire broke out,

:43:21.:43:24.

we don't know the cause, yet, that should come to light at some stage.

:43:25.:43:29.

Certainly, the security service, as you have been hearing and the Fire

:43:30.:43:32.

And Rescue Services have been quick to react. They are on the scene

:43:33.:43:37.

right now, we are unclear as to whether the fire is out yet, but we

:43:38.:43:41.

know that I have spoken to a couple of hotels in the area, and they are

:43:42.:43:49.

ready to receive the guests from the Address Hotel one hotel, is ready to

:43:50.:43:53.

receive the guests which will be evacuated. They are pretty full at

:43:54.:43:57.

this time of year, so-and-so of course there are many people who

:43:58.:44:01.

will be having to evacuate very quickly, and we don't, in terms of

:44:02.:44:05.

loss of life, we haven't got any word about that. There is one or two

:44:06.:44:10.

reports from local news station, saying there appears to be no loss

:44:11.:44:14.

of life. We don't want to make that call yet because it is early day,

:44:15.:44:18.

judging by the size of the fire. I have seen a great deal of pictures

:44:19.:44:27.

on social media, and showing these enormous flames engulfing the

:44:28.:44:31.

buildings, Dubai has hundreds of these kinds of sky scrapers and it

:44:32.:44:35.

has a history of one or two of the fires breaking out. I should let you

:44:36.:44:39.

know something that has come through from the media office in the last

:44:40.:44:45.

minute, saying the Dubai media office celebrations will continue as

:44:46.:44:48.

scheduled. Due, I suppose in about an

:44:49.:44:52.

hour-and-a-half from now, but I should tell you, we are also watch

:44:53.:44:57.

watching the live picture, these flames still engulfing it likes like

:44:58.:45:01.

ten, 20 storeys of this massive hotel, we know there are

:45:02.:45:04.

firefighters at the seen, but they have a massive challenge ahead of

:45:05.:45:09.

them, and yet the Dubai authorities clearly want the celebrations to

:45:10.:45:14.

continue. They have a lot invested in these celebrations don't they?

:45:15.:45:19.

Very much so. I think it is, a showpiece for Dubai. It has put on

:45:20.:45:24.

these enormous displays, to effectively put itself on the world

:45:25.:45:28.

map, along with other major cities round the world, in its, in their

:45:29.:45:33.

firework displays and so I am sure, I guess they are very confident if

:45:34.:45:39.

this will go ahead, what, we don't appear to be seeing a, any sort of

:45:40.:45:44.

major disaster unfolding in terms of loss of life. As I say it is too

:45:45.:45:49.

early to call that, but it seems that if they are going to go ahead,

:45:50.:45:55.

that certainly that is good news, as far as the whole tragic incident is

:45:56.:45:57.

concerned. I am going to correct myself,

:45:58.:46:01.

because I think what we are showing is in fact pictures from a few

:46:02.:46:06.

minutes ago, so we are going to get up-to-date with the status of the

:46:07.:46:10.

fire. As authorities knew there were going to be thousands of people in

:46:11.:46:15.

the area, they did have ambulances and fire crews standing by. I mean

:46:16.:46:19.

the logistics, the preparations for a night like this must be very

:46:20.:46:25.

thorough indeed. Yes, it is enormous, they were expecting a huge

:46:26.:46:29.

amount of guests and not just there, but of course Dubai has the a, as I

:46:30.:46:34.

say, a big history of putting on these events and this particular

:46:35.:46:38.

display was going to start at the Burj Lhalifa. The nor mous building,

:46:39.:46:41.

the largest in the world. It was going to start there, going to snake

:46:42.:46:45.

through town, pop up on the coast, and come towards where I am, at the

:46:46.:46:53.

moment, towards the other major hotel, the iconic hotel, the one

:46:54.:46:57.

that looks like a sail. It was going to follow piece by piece, all the

:46:58.:47:04.

way up the coast and so this is of course, a major day for Dubai,

:47:05.:47:08.

clearly they are happy to go ahead, but it is, it is something of a real

:47:09.:47:16.

issue, that even if no lives, fortunately, they may or may not be

:47:17.:47:19.

lost. It is about safety and security of thesed byings. Nine

:47:20.:47:26.

monthsing a I was covering for the BBC another, tower fire hire which

:47:27.:47:34.

engulfed some 20, 30 storey, the Dubai Torch Tower. Fortunately

:47:35.:47:37.

nobody was injured or killed in that one, but I think seriously questions

:47:38.:47:42.

will be asked about these kinds of events, these kinds of disasters,

:47:43.:47:47.

and how they can improve safety and security in such large towers.

:47:48.:47:59.

We are showing the live pictures, we can see from those, that the flames

:48:00.:48:08.

are far fewer, the scale of the blaze appear to have been brought

:48:09.:48:12.

back. I am going to bring in Nina, who has been following this. Nina,

:48:13.:48:16.

since we first heard about the smoke coming up, the outbreak of this

:48:17.:48:20.

blaze, we know they have been working from the first moments to

:48:21.:48:24.

get this under control. Yes, that is a leaf, seeing those pictures, what

:48:25.:48:28.

was frightening was the speed with which it appeared to spread. It

:48:29.:48:32.

started out as a tiny puff of smoke on the right-hand side of the

:48:33.:48:37.

building, but it spread rapidly over 20 or so storeys and within 10, 15

:48:38.:48:41.

minutes of seeing the flames we were seeing on Twitter pictures from

:48:42.:48:44.

eyewitnesses saying that debris that was still lit, still on fire was

:48:45.:48:50.

falling on and round them. We know about this building, there will be

:48:51.:48:55.

lots of people in therement not just holiday-makers but residents who

:48:56.:48:59.

live there. It is central. It is near the Burj Lhalifa, the tallest

:49:00.:49:05.

sky scraper in the world, there will have been thousands in that area to

:49:06.:49:08.

see the fireworks which was due to start in round 70 minutes or so.

:49:09.:49:10.

Conflicting ereports as to whether Conflicting ereports as to whether

:49:11.:49:14.

not that display will go ahead. The official story is yes, it will go

:49:15.:49:18.

ahead, as expected for the crowds, but you wonder whether that can

:49:19.:49:20.

happen, and what the scene is like happen, and what the

:49:21.:49:23.

on the ground. Certainly eyewitnesses we have heard from at

:49:24.:49:26.

the BBC and we have heard from four or five now, have all said it does

:49:27.:49:30.

feel like it is under control. They feel safe. It has been scary but

:49:31.:49:36.

they say emergency services have reacted well. Est will us get the

:49:37.:49:41.

late paste in fact from the ground. -- latest in fact from the ground.

:49:42.:49:50.

Are you able to see what is happening? The flames are still

:49:51.:49:56.

taking hold of part of this hotel we see. Yes. Hello. Yes, there are

:49:57.:50:00.

still plenty of flames round the hotel. I am in on a apartment on a

:50:01.:50:08.

road, one of the busiest roads in Dubai. It is packed with traffic,

:50:09.:50:13.

all you can see is little blue flashing lights trying to get

:50:14.:50:18.

through. They are the emergency services trying to get to the hotel

:50:19.:50:23.

next to the Burj Lhalifa. It is chaos, they had originally blocked

:50:24.:50:29.

the roads in order to allow the flow of traffic, round Dubai city.

:50:30.:50:34.

However know, all -- now, all this traffic has blocked off, the miles

:50:35.:50:39.

and miles back, and has caused the emergency services not to be able to

:50:40.:50:42.

get to the hotel as quick as they would like to. There is black smoke

:50:43.:50:47.

covering the city as we speak as well, which is causing a bit of

:50:48.:50:52.

distress to people who aren't actually round the scene, but

:50:53.:50:57.

obviously people who are watching the news and praying no-one is

:50:58.:51:05.

injured or hurt. We heard earlier from civil defence official speaking

:51:06.:51:09.

on a TV channel saying there had been no injuries but obviously fire

:51:10.:51:15.

still very much there in the address hotel company 2 it will have been

:51:16.:51:19.

packed, I suppose, because one of the key addresses, for what promised

:51:20.:51:25.

to be a spectacular night. Yes. I mean, in terms of that report saying

:51:26.:51:28.

that there is no injuriesers I find that hard to believe. I mean, after

:51:29.:51:35.

looking at such blazes and knowing how busy that hotel really would

:51:36.:51:40.

have been, at this time. I is inner year, probably one of the biggest

:51:41.:51:45.

hotels apart from the Burj Lhalifa round the down town Dubai area, and

:51:46.:51:48.

I just know that you know, there would have been a lot people there.

:51:49.:51:52.

People are saying no injuries, that is not saying no deaths at this

:51:53.:51:56.

time, which is distressing for a lot of people here in Dubai and people

:51:57.:52:01.

watching on the BBC News. You were talking about the streets

:52:02.:52:08.

round you being choked with cars, presumably some emergency services

:52:09.:52:11.

trying to get to the scene, others trying to get out. Have people

:52:12.:52:17.

stayed fairly calm round you?. I think initially at the scene it was

:52:18.:52:21.

dispressing -- distressing, people seeing the blaze and the black

:52:22.:52:26.

smoke. Now people are slightly calmer and hoping that you know,

:52:27.:52:31.

people inside the building are safe. That is the general feeling round

:52:32.:52:35.

here in Dubai. Parties are still going aahead in terms of New Year,

:52:36.:52:41.

it was going to be a spectacular display, now they will put that on

:52:42.:52:45.

hold. I don't think it is the right time to celebrate the New Year, but

:52:46.:52:50.

the mood I think is a lot calmer than it only was. It has been over

:52:51.:52:54.

an hour since this blaze has been going, let us hope the emergency

:52:55.:53:00.

services can snake their way through the busy traffic and get to the

:53:01.:53:09.

Address Hotel We saw a tweet from the Dubai media office saying New

:53:10.:53:14.

Year celebration will continue as scheduled. Well, that comes can as a

:53:15.:53:20.

shock to me that the celebrations will continue as scheduled. I am

:53:21.:53:24.

surprised the Dubai authority will let that go ahead. It is a

:53:25.:53:29.

devastating, that is happening, whatever has caused it, so, whether

:53:30.:53:33.

they are going to let, let that go ahead we will find out in due

:53:34.:53:37.

course, I think it is just over an hour's time until midnight, so it

:53:38.:53:40.

will be interesting to see whether the fireworks will go ahead. I

:53:41.:53:43.

believe it wouldn't be the right thing to do, until they find out

:53:44.:53:48.

exactly what has happened here, to celebrate town 16, but we will see

:53:49.:53:52.

in over an hour's time. Stay with us. I want to get more from you, I

:53:53.:53:58.

want to remind viewers on BBC News here in the UK, and round the world,

:53:59.:54:03.

that we are following this developing story of a huge fire in a

:54:04.:54:08.

luxury hotel in the heart of Dubai, near the Burj Lhalifa, the Burj

:54:09.:54:11.

Lhalifa Burj Lhalifa area was due to be the centre. The focus of New

:54:12.:54:19.

Year's celebrations in just over an hour's time in Dubai. On the phone

:54:20.:54:28.

Inzi Rashid who is a journalist on holiday. There were meant to be

:54:29.:54:32.

three fireworks displays there. There. Dubai prides itself on the

:54:33.:54:36.

bigger better fireworks This was going to be one of the biggest

:54:37.:54:41.

firework displays that Dubai has put on, you know, for the whole world,

:54:42.:54:46.

to witness. There was an expected over two million people to be in

:54:47.:54:51.

Dubai for these events. It was going to be a fireworks display lasting

:54:52.:54:55.

over 20 minutes, starting at the Burj Lhalifa, then move round the

:54:56.:55:01.

city and eventually end up, I believe at the beach resort. Whether

:55:02.:55:05.

they will carry on with their display, again I am not sure, but it

:55:06.:55:10.

was going to be a spectacular display, I am afraid the only fires

:55:11.:55:15.

is on the Address Hotel which aren't positive. Stay with us. I want to

:55:16.:55:24.

get a few thoughts from Nina. We have heard from a few eyewitnesses

:55:25.:55:29.

talking about how quickly this took hold, even though the pictures we no

:55:30.:55:35.

the flames are being doused to scene extent, but this developed rapidly.

:55:36.:55:38.

When you think about the fact there will have been thousands of people

:55:39.:55:42.

on the ground n the area, gathered for what we have heard would have

:55:43.:55:47.

been a 20 minute firework display, and so in a way they have we have

:55:48.:55:52.

incredibly detailed eyewitness accounts of it spreading. One lady

:55:53.:55:57.

said we saw a small plume of smoke and suddenly the entire level was

:55:58.:56:01.

engulfed and it spread higher and higher. After half an hour we saw it

:56:02.:56:05.

going lower and lower down the building. Incredibly the lights on

:56:06.:56:09.

the tower seem to have stayed on, one would have hoped that people

:56:10.:56:13.

trying to escape have been able to do so safely and largely -- calmly.

:56:14.:56:19.

At the moment reports say they have been any casualties and we hope that

:56:20.:56:23.

that is the case. We hope no casualties are confirmed from all of

:56:24.:56:29.

the eyeness withes we have heard of, they said there were lots of

:56:30.:56:33.

emergency services on site because of the celebration, in fact we heard

:56:34.:56:38.

from one eyewitness people were being turned away. So they were in a

:56:39.:56:43.

position to start evacuating people from the area, so everybody we have

:56:44.:56:48.

heard from has praised emergency services, the pictures we are seeing

:56:49.:56:51.

are from roughly half an hour ago and the fire has been contained

:56:52.:56:56.

better than the pictures suggest. Of course, thoughts are turning to the

:56:57.:57:01.

cause and some speculation about whether the fireworks themselves

:57:02.:57:04.

have been linked. There is no official line on that. People on the

:57:05.:57:08.

ground said there was security to get closes to the site of the Burj

:57:09.:57:14.

Lhalifa, opposite the Address Hotel so people a bit tense any way,

:57:15.:57:19.

worrying about terror attack, there is no implication as to what the

:57:20.:57:28.

causes are, we don't know yet. Thank you so up many for joining us Inzi,

:57:29.:57:34.

able to keep us up-to-date there, we appreciate your time, and one of the

:57:35.:57:39.

things we have heard from him whereas the flames you are seeing

:57:40.:57:43.

are beginning to be brought under control, have been doused to some

:57:44.:57:47.

extent, there is a lot of thick black smoke in which of course there

:57:48.:57:51.

have been thousands of people waiting for the fireworks display,

:57:52.:57:54.

which the authorities may still want to be holding in about an hour's

:57:55.:58:16.

time. An band of showery rain continues to go eastwards. I leaves

:58:17.:58:20.

a trail of showers an some of them wintry, to parts of Northern Ireland

:58:21.:58:23.

and northern Scotland. Particularly above 200 metre for elsewhere, it

:58:24.:58:27.

will be a chilly night but I suspect for many of the firework displays it

:58:28.:58:31.

won't be disappointing. In terms of the feel of things you will need to

:58:32.:58:37.

wrap up warm, hovering above freezing in towns and city centres

:58:38.:58:40.

but just below rural spots and that could lead to a frost. Hopefully

:58:41.:58:44.

early morning sunshine if you are up early enough because the cloud will

:58:45.:58:48.

gather and rain will start to push into the south-west by the end of

:58:49.:58:51.

the day. It will be a windy as well, that will take the edge off the feel

:58:52.:58:55.

of thing, top temperatures to the north of four to six degree, further

:58:56.:58:59.

south we are looking at round seven to 11, so a cooler feel in general.

:59:00.:59:04.

The winds remain a feature, there is more rain to come I am afraid for

:59:05.:59:05.

many.

:59:06.:59:08.

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