Credit: Reuters Photo
Karachi: The death toll in the devastating fire at a shopping plaza in Pakistan's financial capital Karachi increased to 61 on Wednesday after 30 bodies were found in a single shop on the mezzanine floor of the building, officials said.
The fire broke out in the basement of the Gul Shopping Plaza, a wholesale and retail market, and quickly spread to the rest of the building in the Saddar area on the night of January 17. The fire was brought under control only after nearly 36 hours.
Karachi South Deputy Inspector General Asad Raza said that the remains of 30 bodies were recovered from a shop called “Dubai Crockery” located on the mezzanine floor, raising the death toll to 61.
“The shop was located on the mezzanine floor and apparently these unfortunate people, including shopkeepers and customers, tried to save themselves from the fire by closing the shutters of the shop,” he said.
He said that earlier in the day, rescue workers had recovered three more bodies, increasing the toll from 28 to 31.
Reza said the mobiles found with the bodies also showed their location on the mezzanine floor since Saturday night.
He said that the clearance of rubble and search operations on other floors had been halted while the bodies were being removed from the shop.
Sindh police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed confirmed that they have received 21 bodies so far from the location, and most of them were burnt beyond recognition.
“It is very difficult to confirm their identities,” she said.
Officials fear the death toll might climb up to 100 or more as the search operations continue at the location.
Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi, the convener of an inquiry committee formed by the Sindh government to probe the incident, visited the gutted plaza.
Speaking to the media, Naqvi said that the fire safety measures inside the buildings did not adhere to international standards.
Earlier, the government had issued a list of 73 missing people, including women, children and adult males aged between 10 and 69 years of age.
There are at least 16 boys aged between 10 and 18 who were either working at shops or were there for shopping.
Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said the list was compiled after collecting details from affected families and records of the shop owners and their workers in the plaza.
“The shopping plaza’s shop owners association has been a big help in compiling this list,” he said.
More facts emerged about the condition of the building, with senior lawyer Abid Mateen confirming that there were at least three pending cases in courts over the safety measures and condition of the building structure, which was destroyed in the inferno.
According to the chief fire officer at the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, Humayun Khan, it could take another 10-15 days before rescue operations to locate the missing persons are completed.
Governor Sindh Kamran Tessori visited the site on Wednesday and said that every shopkeeper would be compensated. The government has already begun talks with builders to rehabilitate the building, he said.
“It is a national tragedy, and we will not leave those who have lost their loved ones or their business unattended,” Tessori said.