Latest news with #skyscraper
New York Times
16 hours ago
- Business
- New York Times
Is This 19th-Century Factory the World's First Skyscraper?
It's billed as the 'grandparent of the modern skyscraper,' though it's unlikely you've heard of it. From the outside, Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings resembles any number of red brick relics from the industrial revolution that litter the English north and Midlands. But as the first building in the world to be built from a precast iron frame, this 18th-century mill is, according to its custodian, a 'profoundly important' monument of world architecture — the forerunner of all iron- and steel-framed buildings, from 20th-century icons like the Empire State Building to 21st-century behemoths like the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Now, this slab of English industrial heritage is ready for its close-up. This spring, English Heritage, the charity that manages Britain's state-owned historic monuments, took ownership of the Shrewsbury site with a mission to highlight its past and future. The factory may be a miracle of modern engineering, but its legacy is stained by the suffering of the workers, many of them children, who toiled there in harsh conditions. It now houses a museum dedicated to that history, but it is also being reborn as upscale offices for entrepreneurs. Soon, parts of the wider site will be converted into smart new housing. The transformation is the latest in a push to find new uses for outsized relics of Britain's industrial past, driven in part by heritage campaigners. 'Heritage is often castles, thatched cottages, stately homes,' said Matt Thompson, English Heritage's curatorial director. 'Industrial heritage was for a long time overlooked because it's not immediately responding to what we consider significant.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Massive Fire Engulfs 67-Story Apartment Building with Nearly 4,000 Residents, Took 6 Hours to Contain: 'It Was Terrifying'
A 67-story skyscraper went up in flames in Dubai on Friday, June 13 Rescue workers worked for six hours to ultimately contain the blaze All 3,820 residents of the apartment building were successfully evacuatedA 67-story skyscraper containing 764 apartments went up in flames in Dubai. The fire broke out at the Marina Pinnacle building in the Dubai Marina on the evening of Friday, June 13. Specialized teams successfully evacuated all 3,820 residents of the building, per multiple statements from Dubai's Media Office that were posted on social media. The Media Office also shared several photos from the harrowing scene, one of which showed flames emanating from several floors. In a follow-up post, the Media Office stated that ambulance teams and medical staff were 'on site to offer full medical and mental support to the safely evacuated residents.' They also said authorities were working with the building's developer to provide temporary housing for building residents. Emergency services were ultimately able to fully extinguish the fire after six hours, according to an additional update. Eyewitnesses told the Khaleej Times that the fire broke out at about 9:30 p.m. local time. 'I woke up from my sleep after smelling pungent smoke coming into my room. I heard my housemates calling me and we hurriedly went down the building in our pajamas,' one resident told the outlet. She added, 'When we went down, we saw thick smoke coming from the upper level, possibly around the 60th or more floor.' Another resident claimed that he and his wife initially assumed something was burning in their apartment. 'I was on the 24th floor with my wife when we started smelling something like burning wires around 9:45 p.m.,' the resident told the outlet in a follow-up story. 'We checked everything inside the apartment, including the kitchen, but found nothing.' Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. He said that by the time they left their apartment, the stairwell was already filled with smoke, and so they were forced to take the elevator, which 'thankfully worked.' "My wife felt dizzy from the smoke. We waited outside for nearly 45 minutes before booking a hotel. Later, we saw flames on the upper floors. It was terrifying," he said. It is not yet clear what caused the fire, nor where it initially broke out within the building. PEOPLE reached out to Tanami Properties, the company that owns the building, as well as the Dubai Civil Defense, which oversees fire and rescue operations, for comment, but did not receive an immediate response on Saturday, June 14. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Inferno rips through 67-story Dubai skyscraper
Spine-chilling footage shows the moment a huge fire engulfed a 67-story skyscraper in Dubai . Marina Pinnacle - a residential building home to 3,820 people in the affluent area of the Dubai Marina - went up in flames at around 9.30pm on Friday night. Dubai Civil Defence teams spent six hours tackling the blaze until it was successfully contained early on Saturday morning. All 3,820 residents from 764 apartments were evacuated safely and there were no injuries, according to the Dubai Media Office (DMO). 'Ambulance teams and medical staff are on site to offer full medical and mental support to the safely evacuated residents,' a spokesperson for the DMO said on X. Affected residents were provided with temporary housing in a coordinated effort from the authorities as well as the building's developers. With no update on when they can return to their homes, residents have made temporary living arrangements. Prateek M, an Indian expat who lives on the 22nd floor with his wife and young son, has temporarily moved into a hotel. He told Khaleej Times: 'Neighbours from the next building shouted and told me our tower was on fire. I grabbed my son and told my wife to head straight to the emergency exit with me.' The young family battled through thick smoke and descended the staircase. 'We had to hold on to the shoulders of the person in front of us, he said. 'Once we reached the parking levels, where it's more ventilated, we could breathe a little better.' Prateek told the publication that he hopes to return to his apartment soon to check for damage and to retrieve important documents. 'We are safe, and that's what matters. But we hope to return home soon,' Prateek said. Raza, who has lived in the building for three years, was not home when the fire broke out. He remembers the roads being blocked when he arrived at the building at 1am. 'It was clear that I wouldn't be able to go in' he said. After coming across his neighbours who had evacuated the burning building without their phones, Raza started calling taxis to get people to their friends and relatives. Raza said he is 'grateful' that his boss has granted him time off to deal with his housing situation, adding: 'Right now, I am just waiting to know when we can go back and collect our things.' Although the cause of the fire is not yet known, shocking footage appears to show the blaze starting in the upper floors of the building.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Dramatic moment huge inferno rips through 67-storey Dubai skyscraper with 4,000 residents as debris falls from the sky
Spine-chilling footage shows the moment a huge fire engulfed a 67-storey skyscraper in Dubai. Marina Pinnacle - a residential building home to 3,820 people in the affluent area of the Dubai Marina - went up in flames at around 9.30pm on Friday night. Dubai Civil Defence teams spent six hours tackling the blaze until it was successfully contained early on Saturday morning. All 3,820 residents from 764 apartments were evacuated safely and there were no injuries, according to the Dubai Media Office (DMO). 'Ambulance teams and medical staff are on site to offer full medical and mental support to the safely evacuated residents,' a spokesperson for the DMO said on X. Affected residents were provided with temporary housing in a coordinated effort from the authorities as well as the building's developers. With no update on when they can return to their homes, residents have made temporary living arrangements. Prateek M, an Indian expat who lives on the 22nd floor with his wife and young son, has temporarily moved into a hotel. He told Khaleej Times: 'Neighbours from the next building shouted and told me our tower was on fire. I grabbed my son and told my wife to head straight to the emergency exit with me.' The young family battled through thick smoke and descended the staircase. 'We had to hold on to the shoulders of the person in front of us, he said. 'Once we reached the parking levels, where it's more ventilated, we could breathe a little better.' Prateek told the publication that he hopes to return to his apartment soon to check for damage and to retrieve important documents. 'We are safe, and that's what matters. But we hope to return home soon,' Prateek said. Raza, who has lived in the building for three years, was not home when the fire broke out. He remembers the roads being blocked when he arrived at the building at 1am. 'It was clear that I wouldn't be able to go in' he said. After coming across his neighbours who had evacuated the burning building without their phones, Raza started calling taxis to get people to their friends and relatives. Raza said he is 'grateful' that his boss has granted him time off to deal with his housing situation, adding: 'Right now, I am just waiting to know when we can go back and collect our things.' Although the cause of the fire is not yet known, shocking footage appears to show the blaze starting in the upper floors of the building. This is not the first time the Marina Fire has caught fire with NDTV reporting that a blaze broke out on the 47th floor as a result of a 'kitchen incident' in May 2015. Dubai's transport authority warned commuters of a disruption between Dubai Marina Station and Palm Jumeirah Station due to the fire. 'This is to ensure passenger safety and to facilitate the work of firefighting teams responding to the incident,' a statement by RTA on social media read. An alternative bus service was provided.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Smoke billows from Dubai skyscraper after fire reported
STORY: :: Juhri Selamet :: Eyewitness video shows smoke billowing from a Dubai skyscraper :: June 14, 2025 Reuters was able to confirm the location of the videos as Dubai from the buildings, the greenery and the road layout, which matched file and satellite imagery of the area. The date when the videos were recorded was verified by the metadata on the original video files. All residents of the building were safely evacuated, according to a social media post by the Dubai Media Office.
