A fire tore through warehouses in Jeddah's Kilo 8 district on the historic Jeddah-Makkah Road on Saturday morning, gutting three wood and construction materials storage facilities spanning an area of 7,500 square meters, the Civil Defense said.
No fatalities were reported in the blaze, which sent sent a thick cloud of black smoke over the east side of the historic road.
A total of 27 firefighting teams were dispatched to contain the fire but were hampered by strong winds and stored flammable material, according to Col. Saeed Sarhan, public relations director at the Makkah Civil Defense Department.
The firefighters spent several hours containing the fire before it spread to adjacent warehouses in the heavily populated area, with about 70 percent of the fire reported as contained almost seven hours after it was first reported..
The Red Crescent provided on-site treatment to one firefighter who suffered suffocation and for another who sustained minor injuries.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Residents in the area have raised concerns about the safety of the warehouses being located in residential areas, reporting that they lack basic safety measures.
One resident said: "It is just a matter of time before another fire breaks out."