MADINAH: A fire broke out at a hotel housing Muslim pilgrims in the holy city of Madinah in Saudi Arabia on Saturday afternoon, a private channel reported.
Rescue teams are making efforts to evacuate the hotel as firefighters battle the blaze. According to reports, the fire was caused due to a short circuit in a room on the 14th floor.
Most people staying in the hotel were from Pakistan, Egypt, Iraq, and Syria. Almost 250 Pakistanis have traveled to Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah.
700 people from different countries were said to be staying at the hotel, Saudi Arabia’s state news agency reported.
In a similar incident on February 9, 2014, at least 15 people were killed and 130 others were wounded in a fire that broke out at a hotel in Madinah.