KARACHI, Jan 19 — Pakistani firefighters began pulling bodies from the smouldering remains of a sprawling Karachi shopping mall today, where more than 60 people were still missing after a massive fire that killed at least 21.
The city's biggest fire in over a decade started late on Saturday (January 17) at Gul Plaza, a multi-storey complex housing 1,200 shops spread across an area larger than a football field. The blaze in Karachi's historic centre raged for more than 24 hours before it was mostly extinguished.
Videos showed flames ripping through the building as firefighters laboured through the night to put out the blaze. Today, they began cooling the structure and clearing twisted metal and debris strewn across the street, along with fallen air-conditioning units and shop signboards.
Most of the building had crumbled by this afternoon; cranes demolished the remaining structure amid fears it might collapse.
Qasir Khan said his wife, daughter-in-law, and her mother had gone to the mall on Saturday evening and were among those still missing.
"The bodies will come out in pieces from here. No one will be able to recognise them. They could have saved a lot of people," he said, blaming the rescue effort for not being swift enough.
Hundreds of people surrounded the building as rescue teams searched for survivors, including shopowners whose life's work was reduced to ash overnight.
"We have been left high and dry, reduced to zero; 20 years of hard work, all gone," said shopowner Yasmeen Bano.
Anger over the fire
Rescue workers were bringing human remains out in sacks before sending them for DNA testing. They stopped regularly to drink water after enduring intense heat from the debris.
Mohammed Ameen, who was running operations at the site for the Edhi emergency services non-profit, said 21 people had died in the fire, including a child.
Sindh province Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah had earlier put the death toll at 15, including a firefighter, with 65 people missing. He said that 80 people were injured in the blaze, with 22 already released from the hospital.
Anger was bubbling when Karachi's Mayor Murtaza Wahab visited the site last night, with people chanting anti-government slogans and protesting the Fire Department's response time, local media reported.
Kosar Bano said six of her family had gone to the mall to shop for a wedding. The last time she heard from them, they said they would be home in 15 minutes.
"The only hope we have is how many hands we will find, how many fingers we will find, and how many legs we will find. That is it," she said.
Thick smoke filled the building
According to rescue services, the authorities received the first emergency call at 10.38pm (1738 GMT) on Saturday, reporting that ground-floor shops were on fire. By the time firefighters arrived, the flames had already spread to the upper floors, engulfing much of the building.
Images of the mall's interior revealed the charred remains of stores and a bright orange glow as flames continued to rise throughout the building.
Firefighters said Gul Plaza's lack of ventilation allowed thick smoke to fill the building, slowing efforts to reach people trapped inside.
"I am admitting that there are faults. I cannot say whose fault this is. An inquiry will be conducted, and heads will roll," Shah said.
Earlier, provincial police chief Javed Alam Odho said the fire was caused by an electrical fault, but Shah said the reason was still unknown.
The blaze could be Karachi's biggest since an industrial site went up in flames in 2012, killing more than 260 people. A court ruled in 2020 that the disaster was caused by arson.
