Fire rips through wooden dhows in Sharjah Creek

Plumes of thick smoke billowed from docked fishing boats on Monday morning

Fire destroyed several wooden fishing boats in Sharjah Creek on Monday morning. Credit: Al Roeya 

Emergency crews responded to several fishing boats on fire in Sharjah creek on Monday morning.

Clouds of white smoke billowed into the air close to the emirate's Souq Al Jubail just after 10am.

The wooden boat that caught fire was destroyed during the blaze while three other wooden boats were damaged. No one was injured.

“Firefighters reached the area within five minutes and managed to control the fire in 30 minutes,” said Colonel Sami Al Naqbi, director general of Sharjah Civil Defence.

“Wooden boats catch fire easily, and the fire spreads quickly but the team managed to control the blaze in record time."

Investigations are still underway to find the cause of the fire.

Fire crews doused the dhows with water cannon from onshore vehicles parked up on the corniche to extinguish flames.

Civil defence also attacked the fire from the water, as traffic was diverted away from the scene.

"We always advise boat workers, owners and users not to cook or smoke on board wooden boats for their safety and the safety of the public," said Colonel Al Naqbi.