Daily Times

LAHORE: At least five people died and six others injured after a fire broke out in a bakery in Garden Town area of the city on Tuesday morning.

Rescue officials said that the five people choked to death after inhaling smoke.

Initially, it seemed that the blaze was caused by a short circuit in the basement of the building where a cafeteria was located, rescue officials said, adding that the fire soon engulfed other floors of the eight-storey building. They said all of the deceased died of suffocation.

Police and rescuers shifted all the injured to a nearby hospital where doctors pronounced five persons brought dead.

Four of the five deceased were identified as 25-year-old Shahbaz, 40-year-old Shahid, 30-year-old Talib and 15-year-old Shakeel.

“The deceased were trapped inside their offices and couldn’t find a way out,” police said, adding that there were no safety measures at the building. “There were no fire alarms present within the plaza or emergency exits.”

Police took the plaza’s owner Aleem Khan into custody.

Moreover, Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif took notice of the incident and summoned a report over the incident.

The CM also expressed his grief over the five lives lost in the incident.

The fire was brought under control with the efforts of the Fire Department and rescue officials.

A number of government and political leaders also visited the spot and inquired about the tragic incident. They also visited the hospital to inquire about the condition of the injured. They said that the best medical treatment would be provided to all the injured.

On January 8, a fire had broken out in a departmental store on MM Alam Road.

The blaze quickly spread through and enveloped the entire five-storey building. Ten to 15 fire trucks participated in the effort to douse the flames.

Published in Daily Times, April 4^th 2018.