Fire engulfs 34-story tower

Rescue crews in Dubai safely evacuated a 34-story residential tower yesterday after a fire gutted portions of the building, police said.

The blaze charred the outside of the structure and sent grey smoke drifting over a major development known as Jumeirah Lakes Towers, a cluster of high-rise apartment buildings and shops on the southern edge of Dubai.

Residents, some wearing pyjamas and clutching passports and other belongings, stood on roadways watching flames pour from windows on high floors.