DUBAI, Jan 1 (Reuters)—Firefighters on Friday appeared to have mostly extinguished a fire that suddenly covered one of Dubai’s most well-known skyscrapers on New Year’s Eve, witnesses said.

White smoke still came out from the burned 63-storey Address Downtown Dubai hotel and residential block at daybreak, but civil defense crews had mostly extinguished the flames which broke out around 2130 (1730 GMT).

Witnesses reported seeing flames coming out from a lower part of the building as late as around noon local time, but a hotel spokesperson said the situation was under control. “The fire in the hotel has been controlled. We would like to express our gratitude to the authorities for their immediate and professional support. An investigation is ongoing,” the spokesperson wrote in an email. 

Dubai police said on Thursday that the building was emptied and 14 people were lightly injured. A medical worker at the scene said more than 60 people were treated for mild smoke inhalation(吸入) and problems caused by crowding as they fled.

The New Year’s fireworks display at the nearby Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, is one of Dubai’s most celebrated annual ceremony and attracted thousands of spectators—most of whom were sent to safer places before the event went on as scheduled. Live TV broadcasts of the most luxury show appeared to show only a few dozen people in the vast viewing place near the tower.

Dubai, among the most open and peaceful cities in the war-battered(饱受战乱的) Middle East, is proud of  itself as a tourist and business center. But the metropolis, one of seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE), may face questions about the safety of its rapidly-constructed cityscape, especially after another high-rise building caught fire earlier this year. Security officials said the conflagration began on the outside of the structure at the 20th floor, and the deputy chief of police said the investigation into its cause was underway.

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1.How long might the fire have lasted?

A About 9 hours.

B About 5 hours.

C About 13 hours.

D About 4 hours.

解析：选A。细节理解题。根据文章第一段…the flames which broke out around 2130 (1730 GMT)与文章第二段…seeing flames coming out from a lower part of the building as late as around noon local time可以推知，这场发生在阿德里斯酒店的大火延续了九个小时左右,故选A。

2.What caused some of the people to be treated according to the passage?

A They had been burned by the fireworks display.

B They had been injured when they crowded to see the fireworks display.

C They had taken in some smoke when the fire broke out.

D They had been injured when the building was emptied.

解析：选C。细节理解题。根据文章第三段…more than 60 people were treated for mild smoke inhalation and …可知，有些人因为发生火灾时吸入浓烟，目前正在医院接受治疗,故选C。

3.We can infer from the passage that ________.

A thousands of people watched the fireworks display on New Year’s Eve

B the fireworks display might be the cause of the fire on the hotel

C fires often take place on the tall buildings in Dubai

D many people might have stayed in the building to watch the display

解析：选B。推理判断题。根据文章最后一段…the conflagration began on the outside of the structure at the 20th floor，结合阿里法塔燃放焰火的情况判断，阿德里斯酒店的大火有可能是燃放焰火引起的,故选B。

4.The underlined word “conflagration” in the last paragraph means _______.

A decoration

B installation

C fire

D display

解析：选C。词义猜测题。根据语境可知，conflagration意为“大火”，故选C。