Summary Instagram user AbdulRahman Alateeqi took a selfie with the inferno in the background.
DUBAI (Web Desk) - While people were fighting for their lives, a couple took a photo of themselves with the burning Address Downtown Dubai hotel in the background on New Year‘s Eve.
Instagram user AbdulRahman Alateeqi took a selfie with the inferno in the background and posted it about an hour after the fire started.
The post read: “Happy New Year My dear Dubai. May God bless you and keep you safe, you always surprise us with the biggest fireworks.”
Some followers replied with comments such as “couples on fire,” and “lol” but others were horrified, calling it the most inappropriate selfie ever. The post was eventually deleted.
The Address Downtown Hotel in Dubai is still giving off plumes of smoke this morning after the New Year‘s Eve fire. It is located directly across from the world’s tallest skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa, where the city‘s New Year‘s Eve fireworks took place amid the blaze.
Investigators in Dubai are working to determine the cause of a spectacular fire. They said the fire is believed to have erupted from the outside of the building on its 20th floor before spreading along its whole facade. But the exact cause was not yet known.
Witnesses described scenes of panic after the fire spread, with residents screaming and some fainting as they rushed to evacuate the building.
Still, authorities said only 16 people had suffered mostly minor injuries despite the presence of thousands in the area to watch the celebrations.
At least 14 people were slightly injured, one was moderately injured and one person suffered a heart attack during the evacuation.
All victims have been discharged from hospital except for a pregnant women and an elderly man who were said to be "well" but were kept in "to ensure their safety," the civil defence said.
