Shah Alam Market fire: Stung by losses, traders blame fire fighters

Local traders express dissatisfaction with the Rescue and the Fire Brigade.

LAHORE: Five people were still missing on Tuesday evening following Bahria Tower’s collapse in the Shah Alam Market as firefighters struggle to control the fire. Local traders expressed dissatisfaction with the Rescue and the Fire Brigade.

Four of the missing men are guards, Muhammad Zahir (31), Muhammad Kamal (65), Samiul Qamar (61), Bakht Zada (18). All four are from Shangla who lived in Lahore. Mochi Gate resident Laeeq (45) is also missing. Locals fear that the fatalities are more than the official count.

On Monday, Edhi officials confirmed the death of three people in Bahria Tower. They said that rescuers headed inside the plaza to pull out three injured people when the roof of the plaza caved in.

Valuables worth billions were reduced to ashes as a fire was first reported in the Bahria Tower early Monday morning. Three commercial buildings and one mosque were razed to the ground while five other buildings were damaged, two of which were in a dilapidated condition. Shops remained closed in the Shah Alam Market yesterday in solidarity with the owners of the burnt plaza and to protect the performance of fire fighters.

Rescue 1122 district emergency officer Amir Raza told The Express Tribune that fire fighters had been able to control the active fire. He said fire fighting had moved into the second phase, rescuers would now wait for the building debris to cool down. He said that it could take 24 to 48 hours before the flames inside the debris were extinguished. In the third phase, he said, the debris would be removed. He said it could take a month to remove the debris, saying that it would be done manually as the road was narrow.

Raza said he was astounded at the speed with which the fire had spread. He said Rescue 1122 got the emergency call at 8:27 am on Monday and by 9:05 Bahria Tower had collapsed to the ground. He thought it likely that the fire started late Sunday night without anyone noticing it.

The evidence collected so far, Raza added, suggested that perfumes, cigarette lighters and fire works were made inside the building. He said the heavy amount of propane and gun powder present might have caused the explosion that brought the plaza down.

Resident Muhammad Sadiq said that when the plaza fell, debris was tossed around all over the place. Prior to that there was no sign of the fire, he said. He agreed that a large quantity of fireworks were manufactured and stored at Bahria Tower.

He disagreed, however, with the claims of fire fighters that the fire had been put out. He said the flames were still visible. He said people were infuriated by the colossal damage. He said there had been several skirmishes between angry traders and the fire fighters.

Amjad Qadri, one of the owners of Qadri Plaza that went down in flames, told The Express Tribune that the government was apathetic. He said that other than the plaza, he had lost stock worth Rs50 million which he had shifted to the plaza godowns a few days ago. Qadri was of the opinion that the fire fighters were ill equipped for such a massive fire. He said even after 30 hours, the fire fighters were reluctant to get close to the fire.

A local trader said the fire had left hundreds of families stranded. He said the traders would not be able to deal with this loss without the government coming to their rescue. He said the traders who only depended on these shops as a source of livelihood were doomed unless the government stepped in.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 9^th, 2011.