2 maids in Dubai die of carbon monoxide poisoning

Two Asian housemaids died after they suffocated from carbon monoxide gas in their room in a Bur Dubai villa.

After initial investigations, authorities concluded that they had inhaled the gas in their sleep after they lit a charcoal fire in their room to keep warm.

The room was not ventilated as the windows and doors in their room were tightly shut and had sound insulators. The victims suffocated due to a high concentration of gas built up in the room.

The owner of the villa found the maids unresponsive - in a sleeping position - after he noticed that they hadn't gotten up at their usual time the next morning.

He quickly called an ambulance, but paramedics declared them dead upon their arrival.

Colonel Ahmed Al Marri explained that carbon monoxide gas is one of the most dangerous killers, as it kills silently without pain once it fills the lungs. Police had recorded six such deaths last year, but this incident was the first one this year.

Al Marri stressed that incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning were more common in the winter, as people resort to charcoal fires to keep warm.

He added that homeowners, especially those on the outskirts of Dubai, need to be aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide and should educate those working for them.