Mad scramble at Dubai villa launch

Dubai is once again witnessing a mad rush by investors eager to book new properties, reminiscent of the heydays before the recession.

On Saturday, more than 1,000 potential investors lined up outside developer Emaar Properties' office in Downtown Dubai to buy villas in project Mira, the first residential community in Reem near Arabian Ranches.  But shockingly, the massive queue later turned into a chaotic commotion, local website Emirates24/7 reported.

A three-bedroom villa was priced at AED 988,888. Emaar had earlier announced that the sale of 188 villas will start at 7 am on April 13, on a first-come-first-serve basis.
 
“Everything was okay until just before 7am, but then some people tried to break the barricades in a bid to crash the queue. Eventually, police and ambulance crews had to be called and a woman passed out in the ensuing melee," the website reported citing an eyewitness account.

Guards and investors got into fistfight, as some potential buyers, who had been waiting in front of the Emaar office for two nights and three days to grab the deal, lost patience as others tried to outsmart them by sneaking to the front of the queue, the website reported.

“After the initial fracas, Emaar officials announced that the sale had been ‘cancelled’, and asked those outside their office to leave. With a large number of hopefuls turned away, Emaar eventually began the sales process at about 10.30am," the website reported citing an eyewitness.

In a statement the developer said the authorities assisted in organising the significant crowd that had formed at Emaar Square.