By Youssef Ayman
Civil defence forces have successfully gained control over a large fire that ravaged a commercial building in the Attaba area in Downtown Cairo in the early hours of Sunday, state newspaper Al-Ahram reported.
The Cairo civil defence forces were notified of the blaze that broke out in a commercial building of four floors. The building contained dozens of stores and shops, mostly of electric appliances and plastics, and they were completely destroyed.
The fire injured two people with severe burns and shrapnel and they were transferred to Ahmed Maher Hospital, according to the Health Ministry spokesman Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, who stressed on the absence of any deaths.
The efforts of the firemen were witnessed by Cairo security chief Khaled Abdel Aal, as well as the director of the investigations bureau Hisham El-Raqi, a sign that shows how major the fire was.
Large fire outbreaks are relatively common in Egypt, as safety standards are lacking in most buildings and properties located in old Downtown Cairo.
The incident draws attention to Attaba, which is currently the focus of policemen and civil defence forces in their campaign to remove street vendors and curb traffic violations.
