Four including women missing after deadly Gul Plaza fire in Karachi

KARACHI:  Four, including women, have reportedly gone missing after a third-degree fire engulfed Gul Plaza in Karachi.

The family arrived at Gul Plaza for shopping ahead of a wedding, according to their relatives.

Relatives present outside the fire-hit building on MA Jinnah Road said that the women had visited the market to purchase wedding items, but contact with them was lost late last night.

An uncle and aunt who arrived in search of the missing women said that four of those unaccounted for belong to the same family.

They added that the family lives nearby and began searching when no information was received until 1am. However, those who went looking for the women also failed to return, deepening fears.

Family members said they searched several hospitals but found no trace of the missing women. Their names also do not appear on the list of confirmed fatalities.

Following the blaze, several citizens are desperately searching for their loved ones. One man said his last conversation with his brother was during the fire, when he pleaded for help, saying he feared he would die.

A shop worker, Arif, employed at Gul Plaza, is also missing. His uncle said Arif’s final call was made while he was trying to battle the flames, begging to be rescued