ABU DHABI: A huge fire raced through a yacht club in the capital of the United Arab Emirates on Monday, consuming eight boats docked in the harbour.

Police said the blaze broke out before dawn on Monday at the Abu Dhabi Marina Yacht Club, where more than 200 boats are moored. No one was reported hurt.

Abu Dhabi civil defence director-general Lt. Col. Mohammed Abdul-Jalil al-Ansari says nine separate firefighting teams responded to the blaze.

He says a preliminary investigation suggests the fire broke out aboard two boats before spreading to others. It was unclear what sparked it.

The blaze was reminiscent of a large fire that broke out in July among three cargo vessels docked alongside the main waterway in the centre of neighbouring Dubai.

Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2016