At least 21 dead in a fire in a shopping center in Pakistan | International

At least 21 people have died in a fire in Karachithe most populated city in Pakistanaccording to official figures collected by the Reuters agency. This Monday, fire crews began extracting bodies from the smoldering remains of a large shopping center, where more than 60 people were still missing after the incident.

The city’s largest fire in more than a decade began Saturday night in Gul Plaza, a multi-story complex with 1,200 stores, spanning an area larger than a football field. The fire in the historic center of the city of almost 19 million people It lasted more than 24 hours before almost completely extinguishing itself.

Several videos have captured how the flames devastated the building, while the firefighters They worked all night to put it out. This Monday they began to cool the structure and remove the twisted metal and debris scattered across the street, along with fallen air conditioning equipment and store signs. Most of the building was destroyed after the incident. Finally, the decision was made to demolish the structure that was still standing due to fear that it would collapse.

“The bodies will leave here destroyed. No one will be able to recognize them,” says Qasir Khan, who had been in the shopping center on Saturday night with his wife, daughter-in-law and her mother. His relatives are among the missing. Khan claims that rescue teams have not been quick enough to reach the scene of the fire. “They could have saved a lot of people,” he laments.

Hundreds of people surrounded the building as rescuers searched for survivors, including shopkeepers whose life’s work was reduced to ashes overnight. “We have been abandoned, reduced to zero; 20 years of hard work, all lost,” says the store’s owner, Yasmeen Bano.

Uncertainty and indignation

Rescuers bagged the human remains before sending them for DNA testing for identification. Mohammed Ameen, who was directing operations at the scene for the emergency services nonprofit Edhi, reported that 21 people died in the fire, including a child.

Murad Ali Shah, chief minister of the southern province of Sindh, which includes Karachi, had previously estimated the death toll at 15, including a firefighter, with 65 missing. He said 80 people were injured in the fire and 22 had already been released from the hospital.

Outrage was running high when Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab visited the site on Sunday night. People chanted anti-government slogans and protested the firefighters’ quick response, according to local media.

“The only hope we have is how many hands, fingers and legs we can find. That’s all,” laments Kosar Bano, who is looking for six members of his family who had gone to the mall to buy items for a wedding. The last time he heard from them, they told him they would be home in 15 minutes.

According to the rescue services, the authorities received the first emergency call at 10:38 p.m. local time (6:38 p.m. in mainland Spain) on Saturday, informing them that the shops on the ground floor were on fire. By the time firefighters arrived, the flames had already spread to the upper floors and burned much of the building.

Images from inside the mall revealed the charred remains of stores and a bright orange glow as flames continued to rise throughout the building. Firefighters reported that the lack of ventilation at Gul Plaza caused a dense column of smoke to fill the building and slow down efforts to reach people trapped inside.

“I admit there are flaws. I cannot say whose fault it is. An investigation will be held and heads will roll,” Minister Shah said. Provincial police chief Javed Alam Odho had previously said the fire was caused by an electrical fault, but Shah said the cause was still unknown. The fire is one of the largest in memory in Karachi. In 2012, an industrial estate caught fire in 2012. More than 260 people died. A court ruled in 2020 that the disaster was caused.