Amazon's cloud unit reports fire after objects hit UAE data center

Amazon’s cloud unit, AWS, said on Sunday that power to its data center in the United Arab Emirates was shut down temporarily after objects struck the facility, triggering sparks and a fire.

The UAE is reeling from Iran’s retaliatory missile and drone strikes following US and Israeli attacks on Iran. The Iranian strikes hit airports, ports, and residential areas across the country and the wider Gulf.

When Reuters asked AWS whether the incident at the data center was connected to the strikes, the company did not confirm or deny.

AWS said, “At around 4:30 AM PST, one of our Availability Zones (mec1-az2) was impacted by objects that struck the datacenter, creating sparks and fire.”

According to the company’s website, an “Availability Zone” is made up of one or more connected physical data centers. These zones are separate, isolated locations within each AWS Region.

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Fire department cut power to the facility while crews worked to extinguish the fire, AWS said.

It will take several hours to restore connectivity in the affected zone, the data center operator said, adding that other zones in the UAE are operating normally.