At least 16 people, including children, died after a building collapsed in Karachi following a suspected gas explosion during Ramadan pre-dawn hours.
KARACHI: At least 16 people were killed after a building collapsed following an explosion in Pakistan’s southern megacity of Karachi.
The incident occurred around 4:00 am on Thursday in the crowded Soldier Bazaar neighbourhood as families prepared for the pre-sunrise Ramadan meal, sehri.
“Sixteen people, including women and children, have been killed and 13 others injured,” provincial rescue agency spokesman Hassan Khan told AFP.
The three-storey building collapsed after an “unknown” explosion, according to Khan.
Senior city official Nasrullah Abbasi said a gas explosion was suspected. “Apparently it was a gas explosion, but the investigation will reveal the actual cause of the incident,” he told AFP.
Building collapses are common across Pakistan due to poor safety standards and shoddy construction.
Karachi, a city of more than 20 million, is notorious for illegal extensions, ageing infrastructure, and lax enforcement of building regulations.
Around 600 buildings in Karachi have been declared dangerous by the government.
Last July, 27 people were killed when a five-storey building collapsed in Karachi’s impoverished Lyari area.
