Dubai tower fire: Homeless tenants face hefty hotel bills

Dubai tower fire: Homeless tenants face hefty hotel bills Martin Croucher Nov 20, 2012 Save this article . -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DUBAI // Hundreds made homeless by the Tamweel Tower fire have been told they will have to pay for accommodation and wait for partial reimbursement. Related ■ Cladding core holds the key to Dubai tower inferno In pictures: Dubai Tamweel Tower fire ■ Heartbreak as Dubai tower residents pick through the ashes ■ Dubai tower fire: Municipality has no authority over free zones Topic Dubai The developer Tamweel paid for residents, many of whom lost passports and bank cards in the blaze, to stay in hotels for two nights. But they were yesterday told they would have to pay for future accommodation. Tenants who lost almost all of their possessions in the fire at the 34-storey tower early on Sunday said today they had no way of paying hotel bills or rent. "I don't know where I am going to live with my children," said Ilham Laullami, a mother of two whose 24th-floor flat was destroyed. A spokesman from the Tamweel-appointed owners' association, said residents would eventually be reimbursed a portion of the accommodation through the building's insurer. But Ms Laullami said she had no credit cards to foot the Dh10,000 bill for a month's accommodation and was appealing to Tamweel. "They shouldn't treat everyone the same," she said. "Some people have had no damage but we have lost everything. They are a big company, they should look after people better." A source connected with the insurer Arab-Orient said evaluators had yet to be granted access to the building. Police and Civil Defence are in the process of preparing an investigation into the cause of the fire. A Vasuthevan, who lived on the 20th floor, said the arrangement was far from ideal. "They're saying that we can claim the money back but it's not clear when that would be," Mr Vasuthevan said. "It's not fair that they're asking us to pay up front. We're people who've lost everything in the fire but they're a massive company. They could easily cover this." Residents were informed by the owners' association on Monday evening that it would only be able to reimburse a portion of the cost of the accommodation. John Stead, whose family of six used to occupy a three-bedroom apartment on the 32nd floor, said the reimbursable fees of a three-bedroom apartment were Dh12,000, and any further cost would have to be borne by his family. "It's woefully inadequate," Mr Stead said. "There's no way we'll all be able to find a three-bedroom for that amount. The cheapest we have been able to find is Dh20,000 for the month." A spokesman for Tamweel said the owners' association was solely responsible for the residential part of the building. "Property insurance cover for Tamweel Tower is arranged by the building's owners' association," he said. "Tamweel is not the owner of the building. "In reality, the tower belongs to the owners of the units. Tamweel has ownership of the four commercial floors and retail space." The spokesman added the owners' association appointed a five-person board, including a representative from Tamweel, to oversee day-to-day running of the building. "The board had taken an all-risk insurance from Arab Orient Insurance Company and the premium payment was made from the building maintenance fee, which was paid by the owners," he said. "The total value of the insurance for alternative accommodation is Dh1,485,000 and this has been allocated to the unit owners in proportion of their unit area. Under the terms of the policy, this is on reimbursement basis. "Although provision of alternative accommodation is not legally within the purview of Tamweel, the company is supporting residents by liaising with the insurance company. "Furthermore, Tamweel has waived its rights to any claims under the alternate accommodation clause of the insurance policy in favour of other owners and residents, and has additionally offered to facilitate the processing of claims for apartment owners and tenants, although the company has no responsibility to do so." mcroucher@thenational.ae Read more: http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/dubai-tower-fire-homeless-tenants-face-hefty-hotel-bills#ixzz2CpUC66U4 Follow us: @TheNationalUAE on Twitter | thenational.ae on Facebook =================== Cladding core holds the key to Dubai tower inferno Eugene Harnan Nov 21, 2012 Save this article . -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DUBAI// Changes to building regulations over the years have led to potentially flammable aluminium panels being used, although these are always subject to rigorous checks, experts say. Related ■ Dubai tower fire: Homeless tenants face hefty hotel bills ■ Dubai tower blaze inquiry to focus on building materials Topic Fire safety "The extent of a fire nowadays might be less because the rules are much more stringent than before. It does not prevent the fire from spreading out from the facade," said Barry Bell, the managing director of Wagner Fire Safety Management Consultants. Rules have been tightened and safety certifications are required for all materials, including aluminium cladding, before they can be used on any building, irrespective of it being located in a free zone. This year, Dubai Civil Defence introduced the Fire and Life Safety code, which was rolled out nationwide in the summer. Civil Defence officials in each emirate now carry out checks on residential buildings for fire hazards such as inadequate alarms systems or potentially flammable construction material that does not meet strict standards. "It's not to say we are perfect. There are recent changes in codes and standards. There is an immediate response to every event that happens with immediate improvement," Mr Bell said. It is believed 70 per cent of the buildings in the UAE have some form of facade cladding that has a combustible thermo-plastic core between two sheets of aluminium. "If a fire spreads into the cavity of a facade, there's potential for materials, for moisture or thermal insulation [to catch fire], it does have a tendency to become molten and drops downwards. If it starts at the top it's very easy to spread down the cavity," Mr Bell said. Tamweel Tower's cladding burned downwards in the early hours of Sunday morning, making hundreds of residents homeless. "In the past there was a lack of knowledge in the market that the product could burn like this. It burns extremely aggressively. The market didn't realise it was an issue," said Thomas Bell-Wright, chief technical officer for Thomas Bell-Wright international consultants. All building materials in and outside of free zones in Dubai must be approved by the municipality. S Prakash, procurement manager at Sunrays Metal Fabrication Company in Abu Dhabi, said there was a long list of approvals to go through before the company installs any cladding on buildings. The material has to be pre-approved by the municipality, then the paperwork goes to the main contractor who hands it to the consultant. All papers approved by subcontractors are then resubmitted to the municipality on behalf of the consultant to get the all-clear to start building. eharnan@thenational.ae Read more: http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/cladding-core-holds-the-key-to-dubai-tower-inferno#ixzz2CpZT6vZb Follow us: @TheNationalUAE on Twitter | thenational.ae on Facebook ====================

In Dubai, the state of The World is in dispute

AFP/File – An aerial view shows a cluster of man-made islands known as "The World". The cluster of 300 … .by W.G. Dunlop W.g. Dunlop – Fri Jan 28, 6:23 am ET


DUBAI (AFP) – A cluster of 300 artificial islands off Dubai's coast in the shape of a global map is stable, its developer Nakheel insists, despite a court claim alleging that "The World" was neglected and eroding away.

"There is no issue with the stability of The World islands that are approximately 70 percent sold and handed over," a Nakheel spokesman said when asked about the allegations.

"The island purchasers (have) the responsibility to proceed with their developments in due course," he added.

The islands, many of which represent individual countries and which can only be accessed by boat or helicopter, were meant to be one of the Gulf city-state's crowning developments.

Builders have announced plans for a few of the islands, but development has yet to begin on most of them.

A company contracted to provide logistics support to the islands filed a claim with a tribunal that handles cases related to the emirate's troubled Dubai World conglomerate, alleging that third-party developers had not been encouraged to develop the islands, and said they were being hit by erosion.

Nakheel subsidiary The World LLC "did not develop the project as anticipated at the time of the agreement and the project has lain largely undeveloped," according to the claim filed by Penguin Marine Boats Services LLC.

Penguin is contracted to pay "a licence fee of 5 million dirhams ($1.36 million dollars) per annum" to conduct operations, but the lack of development on the islands means it has "been unable to develop its business opportunities," the claim said.

Additionally, "the navigation channels... are presently so ill-defined and the water depths have been so seriously eroded due to reclaimed sand silting up the navigation channels that major reclamation works will henceforth be required," it said.

A lawyer for Penguin Marine, Richard Wilmot-Smith, was quoted by local media as having told the tribunal that "the islands are gradually falling back into the sea."

Nakheel dismissed the allegations as "misleading and mischievous statements."

"The wholly incorrect and unsupported assertion relating to the state of The World islands was made in the context of a legal case brought against The World LLC by a logistics provider," the spokesman said.

"Nakheel will continue to protect the interests of its operations and stakeholders and take such action as is appropriate in the circumstances," he added.
The spokesman said that the case "was dismissed with costs awarded in favour of The World LLC. We are vindicated by the court's decision."
However, a final judgment with reasons for the decision has not yet been posted to the tribunal's website, where judgments appear after they have been issued..

Abu Dhabi-based English-language daily The National said that the tribunal ruled against Penguin but has not yet given its reasons for doing so.

Lawyers for Penguin Marine declined to comment, and the company's general manager Alex Labor said only that "Penguin's position is... what our lawyers said during the trial."

Nakheel, which developed Dubai's iconic palm-shaped islands and the Atlantis luxury hotel among other developments, was hard-hit by the global economic crisis, which led to a sharp fall in Dubai real estate prices.

Nakheel was to split from parent company Dubai World, which rocked global financial markets when it announced in November 2010 that it needed to freeze debt payments, under a debt restructuring plan.

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Dubai creditworthiness still fragile

-- The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own --

By Una Galani
DUBAI, June 15 (Reuters Breakingviews)- Is Dubai really a safe haven? The emirate will try to take advantage of the contrast between the Arab unrest and its financial recovery, with the launch of a 10-year dollar bond, its second sovereign issue since its own debt crisis began in late 2009. But on some measures, indebted Dubai remains only marginally more creditworthy than some of its prickly neighbours.
Dubai is in better shape than it was. With a lifeline from Abu Dhabi, the government has agreed a restructuring for flagship conglomerate Dubai World. Hotel occupancy rose between January and March this year, according to HSBC, with visitors escaping less stable climes.(Climate: in search of warmer climes.
) New export orders have also continued to rise over the period.
But Dubai's move to sweeten its latest sovereign issue highlights the emirate's weak spots. A five-year put will give bondholders the option to redeem their debt at face value before the final maturity date. Final terms haven't been disclosed, but the extra guarantee should enable Dubai to secure a lower cost of borrowing, nearer to that of a five-year bond.
Cost-cutting is welcome. But the option will also add to uncertainty about when the emirate's debts are due. The government's total direct debt is around $31 billion. But if quasi-sovereign entities are included, Dubai could be on the hook for over $111 billion or over 130 percent of nominal GDP in 2010. A little less than one third of the total is due this year and next. And a further $25 billion-plus is maturing in 2014, according to estimates made by Credit Suisse at the start of the year.
Restructuring has given Dubai breathing space but it hasn't addressed concerns about the absolute size of its debt load. And there is little sign of action on that front. The emirate still doesn't have a credit rating, and no asset sales are on the agenda. Nor are plans to implement income or corporate taxes.
Judging by demand for Dubai's previous sovereign issue, the emirate won't struggle to find buyers. High oil prices generate plenty of cash looking for a home. But at around 300 basis points, credit default swaps suggest Dubai is only slightly less risky than Lebanon or post-revolutionary Egypt. The CDSs of true safe havens like Abu Dhabi and Qatar trade at only a fraction of that amount.

CONTEXT NEWS
-- Dubai's government is offering a 10-year dollar bond with a five-year put option, according to banking sources.
-- The benchmark sovereign dollar bond, expected to be issued in the coming days, will be the government's second issue since the debt crisis and is part of an existing $5 billion debt issuance programme.
-- New bond issues in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are expected to match or top last year's $40 billion, according to Deutsche Bank.
-- The five and 10-year bonds sold by the government of Dubai in October carry a coupon of 6.7 percent and 7.75 percent respectively, according to data from Reuters.
-- The joint book-runners for the Dubai sovereign bond are Emirates National Bank of Dubai, HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland and UBS.
-- Government of Dubai bond prospectus: http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-detail.html?announcementId=10889667

((una.galani@thomsonreuters.com))
(Editing by Pierre Briançon and David Evans)

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