Death Toll from Pakistan Mall Fire Surpasses Sixty
Emergency responders extracted at least 30 bodies from a mezzanine-level retail unit, Karachi South Deputy Inspector General Syed Asad Raza told the daily Dawn. He said the overall death toll was estimated at 61 following the latest discoveries, adding that the final figure would be confirmed after DNA analysis is completed.
Prior assessments indicated at least 81 people, including women and children, were missing after the blaze.
The inferno ignited Saturday at the Gul Plaza shopping center on MA Jinnah Road, a heavily trafficked commercial corridor cutting through Karachi's historic business quarter. Flames raged for more than 24 hours before firefighters managed to bring the blaze under control.
Gul Plaza contains approximately 1,200 retail establishments, featuring vendors of apparel, electronics, beauty products, and kitchenware. Authorities indicated the concentration of combustible merchandise accelerated the fire's ferocious expansion and devastating power.
Investigators have yet to determine the ignition source, though preliminary assessments suggest electrical faults or inadequate safety protocols may have played a role. The disaster marks one of Pakistan's deadliest commercial structure fires in recent years, raising urgent questions about enforcement of building safety standards and emergency preparedness across the nation's densely populated urban centers.
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