Karen and Bob Carifee, a married couple from Texas, were sitting on the beach in Dubai watching the sunset on Saturday when they heard a loud noise and saw the luxury Fairmont hotel just across the water get hit, with black smoke billowing into the sky.
“I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me? What is happening?'” Karen Carifee told Business Insider.
The hotel was damaged after Iran launched retaliatory strikes on the United Arab Emirates following the US and Israel’s attacks on Iran. Iran has said the strikes are targeting US military assets in the Middle East. UAE officials said they’ve been intercepting air attacks, but the resulting debris has caused fires and ground damage.
Carifee said they had heard earlier on Saturday about the attack on Iran, but did not think it would impact them in Dubai since it was in another country. They even took a hot air balloon ride that morning and visited the Dubai Miracle Garden. They didn’t realize until they heard the loud booms and saw the smoke at the Fairmont that Dubai would be affected.
Now the couple is stuck in Dubai after the cruise they were expected to take on Sunday was canceled. They were planning to get on the Celestyal Journey cruise ship, which is stuck in Doha, Qatar. They’ve had to extend their stay at the Waldorf Astoria on Palm Jumeirah while they figure out how to get home.
Several US embassies have told Americans they could not help them evacuate the Middle East. The Carifees said they haven’t been able to get any help or answers from the US government or the consulate in Dubai.
“We did everything we were supposed to. We registered like we were supposed to,” Carifee said on Tuesday, adding she’d seen the British government was making plans to help evacuate its citizens. “I’ve not heard anything of anyone. I watched the news, and we have not heard them saying, ‘We’re going to work to get the Americans out of there.'”
President Donald Trump was asked on Tuesday if he would charter planes to help evacuate Americans. “It all happened very quickly,” he said of the attack.
The State Department says it’s chartering flights to evacuate Americans
The State Department on Monday urged Americans to evacuate from more than a dozen countries in the Middle East, including the UAE. On Tuesday, Dylan Johnson, the assistant secretary of state for global public affairs, said the agency was “actively securing military aircraft and charter flights for American citizens who wish to leave the Middle East.”
He said the department had been in contact with “nearly 3,000 Americans abroad” and urged citizens who need assistance to call a number.
Carifee said Tuesday she tried calling the State Department hotline for Americans in the Middle East — the same number Johnson shared — after she saw it on the news, but got a pre-recorded message that said there was no help available.
She also tried contacting the US consulate in Dubai and signed up for the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive updates. She said the only instructions they’d gotten were to “shelter in place.”
“I’ve been doing that,” she said. “I want to know an exit plan.”
Business Insider also called the hotline on Tuesday afternoon and got a 45-second pre-recorded message that told Americans to check the embassy website, shelter in place, and enroll in STEP for updates.
“Please do not rely on the US government for assisted departure or evacuation at this time,” the message said. “There are currently no United States evacuation points.”
On Tuesday evening in Washington, DC, the State Department issued a statement saying it was “facilitating charter flights from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan for American citizens, and will continue to secure additional capacity as security conditions allow.”
The department said it was also helping Americans book commercial flights available from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman, and Egypt.
“The Department has answered calls from nearly 3,000 American citizens in the Middle East and continues to provide travel options for those wishing to leave,” the statement said.
A call to the hotline on Tuesday evening returned a new message instructing callers to stay on the line for assistance.
Carifee said that after their cruise was canceled, they booked a flight out of Dubai for Monday, but it was canceled. They rebooked again for Wednesday, but it too was canceled. She said they currently have a flight booked for Thursday, but are unsure whether it will be canceled as well.
The couple said in some ways everyone was trying to get back to normal, even as there were occasional loud noises and missiles could be seen being intercepted overhead. They spent the first couple of days at the beach and, on Tuesday, even made it to the Dubai Mall.
Carifee said they feel mostly safe and that the Dubai government is doing a lot to reassure its residents and tourists.
“We’re staying hopeful,” she said. “We’re staying positive where we can.”
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