Indian family of eight rescued in Abu Dhabi after fire engulfs residence

During evacuation, an 84-year-old paralysed man slipped off his wheelchair as the family was coming down the stairway of their building and got his voice back that he had lost in 2013.

An Indian-origin family has been rescued after a fire in their residential complex here, officials said.

The fire broke out in the complex in Abu Dhabi’s Navy Gate area late on Saturday. All the residents, including the Indian-origin family of eight, were rescued due to the intervention of civil defence members, the Khaleej Times reported on Tuesday.

Saju George John, his wife Kochumol Mathew, their four children and his elderly parents had been living in the residential complex for several years.

During the evacuation, John’s 84-year-old father, who is paralysed, slipped off his wheelchair as the family was coming down the stairway of the building.

“Someone had opened the main door at that time and the civil defence authorities heard our cries for help. A few officers rushed up the stairway and immediately carried my father, my mother and us to safety,” John said.

The elderly man, who wasn’t able to speak since 2013, got his voice back during the incident. “It was a terrifying moment because I haven’t heard my father speak since long,” said John while recounting the incident.

He said his father only suffered visible head wounds.