Five-storey residential building collapse in Korangi Allah Wala Town

A residential building collapsed in Karachi’s Korangi on Thursday. At least seven people have been injured and there are fears eight to 10 people may be stuck underneath the rubble.

Several people were reported buried under the rubble of the building. Sindh Rangers arrived at the scene. Rangers personnel engaged in rescue operations with rescue teams.

The four-floor building is located in Allahwala Town. Seven injured people, including two children, were pulled out from beneath the rubble and shifted to a hospital.

The building was built on a 120 square yard of china-cutting land carved out of an amenity plot reserved for a playground. There are other buildings built illegally on the plot. According to the SBCA, the building not on the list of dangerous buildings.

According to residents, five families lived in the building. Despite being asked to leave, two to three families were still living in the building at hte time of the collapse.

Heavy machinery has been called in to remove the rubble but the lane is narrow. Residents are helping search for survivors.

SBCA Director-General Ashkar Dawar said the building was one of several illegally built on a 22,596 square-yard plot allocated for a playground.

We did not grant our approval for its construction, he said. Dawar said a technical team is at the scene to investigate.