Four dead in Karachi's Arshi Shopping Mall blaze

KARACHI: At least four dead and two others sustained injuries as fire broke out in Arshi shopping mall and residential flats near Ayesha Manzil, Karachi, ARY News reported.

As per details, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said the fire that erupted at the shopping mall is under control now, whereas the cooling process is underway.

He maintained that the authorities will estimate the losses once the fire brigade officials complete the process.

The incident occurred in Karachi’s Ayesha Manzil where fire erupted in foam shops and quickly expanded to residential flats.

Police officials said that shopping mall has mostly foam shops which is intensifying the fire rapidly.

Rescue operation

SSP Central Faisal Abdullah confirmed the launch of a rescue operation to evacuate individuals trapped within the affected residential building. The operation involves the deployment of a Snorkel and a Bowser.

Talking to media the resident of the building said “I was inside my flat and I am with my ‘special child’ who is four years old. People are cooperating, but I just hope our flat is saved. I pray for everyone here,” she added that the guards evacuated her family to safety.

Fire brigade department official Humayun Khan said that this is a third category fire. He said that the fire engulfed the entire building.

Safety warning

“The affected building is at risk of collapse at anytime” warned 1122 officials and urged the people to stay away from premises of the building for their safety.

Rescue 1122 has confirmed the safe evacuation of 300 individuals from the affected building. Fortunately, no damage has been reported to nearby structures.

1122 officials stated that the firefighting and cooling process is being carried out simultaneously to contain the escalating situation.

Sindh CM takes notice

Furthermore, Caretaker Chief Minister Sindh Maqbool Baqar has taken notice of the Arshi shopping mall fire and directed the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner to closely monitor the situation at the site of the incident.

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab emphasized that the primary focus is on saving human lives, though the exact number of people trapped remains uncertain.

The development comes days after 11 people were killed when a huge fire engulfed R.J. Shopping Mall at Karachi’s Rashid Minhas Road.

Following the incident, Mayor Karachi Murtaza Wahab decided to conduct ‘safety audit’ of all major buildings across the city.

Wahab – in a statement – said that firstly, a safety audit of major buildings at I.I Chundrigar Road and Sharea Faisal will be carried out. In the second phase, the mayor said, the authorities will conduct audit of buildings at Tariq Road.

READ: 11 die as fire engulfs shopping mall on Karachi’s Rashid Minhas Road

He regretted that no emergency evacuation routes were built in majority of the buildings in Karachi. “Action will be taken against responsible, if there are no safety exit in huge buildings,” he added.

Karachi, the country’s economic hub with a population of 20.3 million, is home to a vast network of factories and towering high-rises, but the city’s firefighting infrastructure is inadequate to deal with its frequent fires.

Earlier in November, urban planners and engineers at a symposium said that about 90 percent of all structures in Karachi — residential, commercial and industrial — lacked fire prevention and firefighting systems.