Rescue teams expect to recover several bodies from the ground floor, where the fire started
Rescue and emergency team members gather near heavy machinery before starting their search for survivors, after a massive fire broke out at Gul Plaza Shopping Mall in Karachi on January 22. Photo: Reuters
KARACHI:
The death toll from the Gul Plaza fire has risen to 71 as rescue teams found additional human remains during ongoing search operations, with authorities expecting the final sweep of the building to be completed today (Friday).
According to Citizen-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) Identification Desk Officer Amir Hassan, four bags of human remains were brought to the hospital overnight. “These remains may belong to four people,” he said, adding that the death toll has potentially reached 71.
Police surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed stated that the identities of 16 people have been confirmed. Six bodies were fully identified, she added, with one identified through an ID card and nine people identified through DNA testing. A total of 45 DNA samples were collected from bodies and body parts.
Read: Search at Gul Plaza enters fifth day with 67 bodies found so far
Deputy Commissioner South, Javed Nabi Khoso, stated that the final list of missing persons is 77. He added that the search operation is in its final phase and the work of searching through the debris will be completed today.
An SBCA team has been deployed at the site where all work is being done under their supervision, Khoso said.
Meanwhile, DG Rescue 1122 stated that around 10% to 15% of the building was not reached earlier but these sections will be searched today. He expressed concern that the ground floor where the fire broke out was not yet accessible and said the bodies are expected to be recovered from there.
“Days have passed since the tragedy, there is no hope that anyone survived,” he said.
The Directorate General confirmed that the fire started in a flower shop and preliminary findings suggest that it spread via a duct.
He explained that when rescue teams arrived at the scene, the fire was at the third degree level. “No suit in the world can withstand a third-degree fire. The most advanced suits and masks in the world were used,” he said.
Revealing that the building did not have a fire safety system and that it was also non-functional, the DG stated that GPS radar had been used over the past three days to check if anyone was alive inside the building.
Read more: Gul Plaza fire causes Rs 100 billion loss, 1,000 shops destroyed
Yesterday, the death toll rose to 67 as rescue teams continued recovery operations for a fifth straight day amid fears that more remains may still be buried under the rubble.
About 80% of the site had been searched, according to rescue officials, with heavy debris from nearly 40% of the collapsed portion remaining to be cleared.
The fire, which broke out on Saturday evening, destroyed the trading post and left it severely damaged.
Human remains were recovered from the rubble during debris removal and were shifted to Civil Hospital Karachi for medico-legal procedures.
