Death toll from Karachi’s Gul Plaza mall fire reaches 55 as recovery efforts continue and families await DNA identification of remains.
KARACHI: The death toll from a devastating mall fire in Pakistan’s largest city has risen to at least 55 people.
Javed Nabi Khoso, deputy commissioner of Karachi’s south district, confirmed the figure, stating “a total of 55 bodies have been recovered since Saturday night” when the blaze erupted.
Relatives of the missing have criticised the slow recovery operation at the three-storey Gul Plaza. Rescuers continue to scour the wreckage for human remains as more than 50 families have provided DNA samples for identification.
Provincial health official Summaiya Syed said authorities would hand over remains to families once DNA matches are confirmed. She made the statement outside the Civil Hospital Karachi mortuary.
Fires are common in Karachi’s markets and factories due to poor infrastructure, but a blaze of this scale is rare. A government committee has launched an investigation, though the cause remains unclear.
Faraz Ali, whose father and brother were inside the mall, expressed the anguish of waiting families. “That is all so that the families may receive something, some comfort, some peace,” the 28-year-old said.
He pleaded for the recovery of bodies so families could “say our final goodbye.”
