The death toll in Karachi’s Gul Plaza inferno surged to 60 after 30 bodies were recovered from a single shop of the multi-storey building on Wednesday.
Speaking to media, South DIG Syed Asad Raza said that 30 bodies were recovered from a shop on the mezzanine floor of the shopping mall.
These people locked themselves in the crockery shop to save their lives, he added.
The police officer further said that a team of bomb disposal squad (BDS) is collecting samples from different parts of all the floors of the building.
Out of 87 “missing” people, bodies or remains of 60 people have been recovered so far, he added.
The DIG said the BDS will also collect samples from the bodies to test for sulfur or explosives.
Suleman, owner of the crockery shop, said that they recovered 14 bodies from his shop, adding that his cousins, employees, and customers were inside the shop when the incident occurred.
Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed, however, said that remains of 21 bodies from two shops were brought to the Civil Hospital, adding: We cannot yet confirm whether these are 21 bodies or remains of more individuals.”
“Since this morning, only remains of bodies have been brought to the Civil Hospital,” she added.
Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah expressed condolences to the bereaved families and directed the authorities to provide all possible assistance to the victims’ families, saying that the provincial government would not leave them alone.
Separately, Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi said that the investigation into the Gul Plaza incident has become quite complex, with multiple angles under review.
“No single institute can be held responsible for the Gul Plaza incident,” he added.
The commissioner, citing official data, said 86 people are missing, while bodies of some have been recovered from the rubble.
He said, adding that rescue and search operations are underway in the affected building.
Karachi Additional IG Azad Khan said: “So far, no evidence of terrorism has been found in the Gul Plaza incident.”
He said a thorough investigation into the incident is underway.
Meanwhile, District South Deputy Commissioner Javed Nabi Khoso said data is being collected on old buildings lacking fire safety systems and warned that action would be taken against violators.
He said that work on 48 under-construction buildings in the district has been stopped due to lack of emergency exits. Six other under-construction buildings were sealed as they lacked firefighting equipment in the district.
He said that the building would not be demolished as long as even one person remains missing.
Speaking to the media, DC Khoso said that 86 people more missing in the aftermath of the blaze and added, “when everything is complete, the entire building will be demolished”.
The official noted that location of 39 missing people were traced back to the shopping centre, while 17 bodies recovered from the site are yet to be identified. The DC said 11 bodies had been identified so far.
The port city’s biggest fire in over a decade started late on Saturday at Gul Plaza, which houses 1,200 shops in a multi-storey complex 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 extinguished.