wood used for construction stored in the premises. Soon, the entire building was engulfed in smoke. Hospitals were put on high alert, but no injuries were reported. A civil defence spokesman said the fire started on the 32nd floor of the Hajar Tower. The second fire struck the Safa Tower on 1 May 2009. No deaths or injuries were reported in the blaze which was quickly contained by Civil Defence. Eyewitnesses said the fire broke out soon after Asr prayer while some workers in the building were welding iron rods on wooden scaffoldings. The fire damaged a large part of the under-construction tower. According to Major General Adel Zamzami, director general of Civil Defence in the Mecca province, the fire broke out at the 14th floor and reached up to the 20th floor. Controversy The construction engendered some controversy as the location chosen for the towers was the historic 18th-century Ottoman Ajyad Fortress, which many locals consider to be a symbol of Ottoman oppression. The fortress was demolished to make way for the complex. The development has been criticised by The Guardian for having "transformed a type of architecture that evolved from a dense urban grain of low-rise courtyards and narrow streets into ... an endlessly repeatable pattern for the decoration of standardised [concrete] slab(s)". Gallery See also List of buildings with 100 floors or more List of tallest buildings in Saudi Arabia List of tallest buildings List of largest buildings List of tallest hotels List of largest clock faces References External links Reshaping Mecca—slide show, The New York Times 2012 establishments in Saudi Arabia Buildings and structures in Mecca Clock towers Hotel buildings completed in 2012 Hotels established in 2012 Skyscrapers in Mecca Arabic architecture Shopping malls in Saudi Arabia Residential skyscrapers in Saudi Arabia Skyscraper hotels in Saudi Arabia Landmarks in Saudi Arabia Fairmont Hotels and Resorts