The sirens rang today, Saturday, at three and fifteen minutes in the afternoon, at the City Center “Carrefour” mall in the Muharram Bek region of the central Alexandria district, after a massive fire broke out and the flames of smoke and fire ascended amid a state of fear among the pioneers.
A major fire broke out in the City Center “Carrefour” mall, according to a report received by the Moharram Bey Police Department. Officers from the department, civil protection forces, six firefighting trucks, and an ambulance were dispatched to the location of the communication.
The mall was evacuated of all visitors and store owners, and efforts were made to extinguish the flames of smoke and fire, contain the fire, and prevent its spread to the remaining businesses.
Dr. Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Minister of Health, cut short his visit to Alexandria University and a number of hospitals and rushed to the scene of the fire, accompanied by Governor of Alexandria Major General Mohamed Al-Sharif and Assistant Minister and Director of Alexandria Security Major General Khaled Al-Barawi.
Today, the Minister of Health attended the meeting of the Supreme Council of Universities, which was hosted by Alexandria University and was chaired by Dr. Ayman Ashour, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research.
At 4:20 p.m., civil protection troops had successfully contained the large fire, although cooling efforts continued to keep the flames from rekindling.
The Minister of Health and the Governor declared a state of emergency and full preparation in all facilities and hospitals in anticipation of any ramifications from the fire that destroyed Alexandria’s most famous commercial hub.
The governor stated that the fire injured two persons, one of whom suffocated and another from a civil protection fracture, and that they were carried to the hospital for treatment.
The governor returned, stating that the ultimate death toll from the fire was five, with minor injuries.
According to early investigations, the fire started in the central air-conditioning on the top of the Carrefour business center building from the outside and spread to a “canopy” of one of the gates.
While the governor said that the fire originated in the recreational games area and spread to the adjoining region, he also stated that the losses are being tallied and the reasons of the fire are being investigated.
The “Masrawy” lens captured the efforts of the civil protection men to evacuate the mall and control the fire amid thick clouds of smoke, which resulted in the injury of one of them with a broken foot, and the majority of them sat on the ground from fatigue and exhaustion after completing their mission.
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