Skyscraper fire near Dubai's biggest mall shrouds city in smoke

A large blaze has broken out in a residential skyscraper under construction near Dubai's largest shopping mall.

The city skyline was filled with thick grey smoke as firefighters battled the fire.

The block on fire is next to the 63-storey The Address Downtown Dubai tower, which caught on fire on New Year's Eve on 2015.

The whole skyline was blanketed in smoke Credit: AP

Dubai's government media office said the fire erupted at the Fountain Views towers, and that firefighters have brought it under control.

"Cooling operations are underway and ambulance units are on site," the media office posted on its Twitter account. It said there were no injuries reported.

Firefighters have brought the fire under control Credit: AP

The high-rise complex is being built by large Dubai-based developer Emaar Properties, which raised the mall and the Address hotel struck in the 2015 blaze. The developer declined to immediately comment.

Large numbers of firefighters were on the scene, and police cordoned off nearby roads.

"It was plumes and plumes of black smoke. It looks like it was quite low down," said witness Anthea Ayache.

She said many construction workers were nearby watching the fire from a safe distance.

"There's so many fire brigades, so they seem to have gotten on top of it very quickly," she said.

The fire was near Dubai's largest shopping mall Credit: AP

Niall McLoughlin, a spokesman for Dubai developer DAMAC, said the fire happened next to the DAMAC Maison luxury hotel.

Dramatic fires have hit skyscrapers in Dubai and other fast-growing cities in the United Arab Emirates in recent years. Building and safety experts have cited a popular type of cladding covering the buildings that can be highly flammable.