Precious articles gutted in museum fire

Hessa Saif, Staff Reporter

The Sheikh Zayed Maritime Museum, which was founded by Captain Saleh Ahmed Hanbalouh Al Shehhi in his home in Al Rams in Ras Al Khaimah, caught fire on Tuesday. The contents of the museum including more than 150  historical and heritage pieces of local maritime heritage collected over 19 years, were all gutted.

“The fire broke out due to a short circuit in the fan. My son and I rushed to put out the fire but the museum burst into flames and all its contents were gutted. Helped by my family, I could, however, evacuate my grandchildren of determination and my wife from the museum before the ambulance and Civil Defence were able to bring the fire under control,” Al Shehhi said.

He praised the prompt response of Al Rams inhabitants, who came to his aid and provided support to him and his family, while some of them hosted him and his family in their homes until the remnants of the fire were removed.

Al Shehhi stated that he began collecting the contents of the museum from 2003 and opened it in his old house in 2006. In 2018, the museum was given the name of Sheikh Zayed Maritime Museum and contained everything related to maritime heritage in addition to models of various types of ships.