By Fazeena Saleem

DOHA: The reopening of the City Center Doha (CCD), which was closed to the public three weeks ago for safety enhancements, remains uncertain.

Security personnel at the City Center yesterday informed visitors that the shopping facility would re-open in another week, although the City Center management has put up a notice on its entrance saying that the mall would remain closed until further notice to upgrade its safety system.   

“It will reopen next week. Civil Defence and Kharama are checking the place. Some shops and material blocking the exits are being removed,” said the security personnel.

Interestingly the City Center which receives on average no less than 45,000 visitors a day and the number goes up to an incredible 70,000 on weekends and public holidays, receive visitors despite its closure. Karwa and Sydney,  the mall’s exclusive taxi company, are still operating from the location.  

“People do come here to check whether the shopping mall is open. From here most of them go either to the Lagoona Mall or to the Landmark,” said a Karwa taxi driver, waiting for passengers outside the City Center.

The Ministry of Interior on June 15 said that the City Center will be closed until it complies with safety requirements, although the City Center management initially put up a notice on its entrance saying that the mall would remain closed only for 48 hours.

Later newspaper reports published different dates of reopening of the mall quoting officials. However, the exact date of reopening remains uncertain and no official statement has been released yet. According to the City Center management, the mall is installing new fire safety equipment with a fairly audible alarm and lights system which would help in speedy evacuation in the event of an emergency like fire.

The Civil Defence has asked the City Center management to make emergency exits automatically linked to the safety alarm system so the doors swing open instantly when there is an emergency.

Civil Defence also requires from the City Center management to set up a central control room from where the entire mall could be monitored using CCTV cameras. The Peninsula