6 dead, 18 missing after fire breaks out at shopping mall in Pak's Karachi, probe ordered

Karachi, Jan 18 (PTI) Six people, including a firefighter, died and dozens were injured in a horrific fire that broke out in an huge, old mall in Pakistan's Karachi, officials said Sunday, adding, at least 18 were missing.

Sindh Inspector General of Police (IG) Javed Alam Odho told the media on site that the fire at the multi-storey Gul Plaza on the city’s busy MA Jinnah Road had erupted at around 10:45 pm on Saturday night.

Odho said they had registered names of at least 18 persons who were in the plaza when the fire broke out. “We found six dead bodies and there were some 24 injured people rescued who are now in hospital but these 18 are not among them,” he said.

The fire broke out apparently in the basement and quickly spread to the upper floors and even after 20 hours was yet to be doused out completely.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah directed Karachi Commissioner Hassan Naqvi to immediately inquire into the incident, investigate the reasons behind the fire and submit a report, according to a statement.

Senior minister in the provincial cabinet Sharjeel Inam Memon said the dead and injured were all victims of suffocation.

Odho told reporters that there were around 1,200 shops having commodities which were flammable and all of them had been destroyed in the fire on all floors, including the basement and the mezzanine.

Rescue 1122 spokesperson Hassaanul Haseeb Khan said that there had been six casualties and around 20 people rescued from the multi-storey building have been sent to a hospital.

A firefighter lost his life in the rescue operation while two others were injured after falling from snorkel ladders.

Rescue 1122 Chief Operating Officer (COO) Abid Jalal told the media on Sunday evening that 75 per cent of the fire had been controlled but a lot of work still remained.

“The building was very dilapidated and already the backside has collapsed and the front area might also collapse. So our biggest worry is that we can’t send in rescue teams to search for missing persons until the fire is completely doused out,” Jalal said.

Jalal said some 125 people, including firefighters, were engaged in the ongoing operations and 22 fire engines, three snorkels and a water extinguisher were being used in the operation.

“Once the cooling starts, we will start further rescue operations, but the layout of the building is very complex as it houses a basement and mezzanine floor with hundreds of shops and stores,” rescue 1122's Khan said.

Gul Plaza was built in the early 80s and was a popular destination for all classes as it had hundreds of shops for affordable crockery, decorations, furniture, electronics, clothes, women's cosmetics, perfumes, and other products.

The News International portal said firefighters stated that the lack of ventilation and the closure of windows at the mall — which spans over 1.75 acres, roughly the size of a football field — has led to smoke filling the interior of the building, hindering rescue efforts.

The shopping mall's building has become dilapidated due to the blaze's intensity. The ground and mezzanine floors have been completely burned, whereas the upper two floors are also on fire, it added in a report on Sunday morning.

Abdul Qadir, the head of the plaza’s shop owners' association termed the losses by traders in millions of rupees.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday expressed grief and said that possible steps should be taken to protect people's lives, The News International said.

President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed sorrow over the incident and conveyed condolences on the loss of lives. PTI CORR SKS NPK NPK