Two men killed in Lahore firing

Five fires also reported in the city over the span of a day

LAHORE: Two men were killed and as many people suffered injuries in six different incidents across the provincial metropolis on Monday. Five of the total incidents were those of fire and valuables worth millions of rupees were destroyed.

The first incident occurred when a man tried to commit suicide after shooting two people over a minor issue in Shahdara on Monday.

The alleged assailant, Salman, exchanged harsh words with one of the victims. After some time, he returned with a gun and opened fire near the Old Ravi Bridge.

As a result, Haji Asghar and an unidentified person suffered bullet injuries.  The suspect also tried to shoot himself dead. Ultimately, locals called rescue teams and police who reached the spot and took the victims to Mayo Hospital.

At the medical facility, doctors pronounced Haji Asghar and the unidentified victim as dead on arrival. Salman was being treated and was reported in an unconscious state till the filing of this report.

Police teams, including City SP Ali Raza, reached the spot and collected forensic evidence before recording the statements of eyewitnesses.

Police said the motive behind the incident would be determined after investigations. However, according to eyewitnesses, the suspect had acted alone in the incident by first shooting at the victims and later attempting suicide.

Fires break out

In Khan Colony near Purana Airport, a fire broke out when a resident of the house touched a burner. As a result, the house caught fire.

The victim suffered burn injuries to the legs. Rescue teams reached the spot and shifted the victim to the Burn Unit of Jinnah Hospital and extinguished the blaze.

Moreover, another fire occurred at a house in Arif Chowk Pakki Thathi, Samanabad. The blaze was reportedly started by short-circuiting. Residents of the house called the rescue teams and luckily no loss of life or injury was reported.

Furthermore, a fire broke out at a clothes shop at Pakistan Chowk in Ichra. The fire engulfed the whole shop in no time and locals called rescue teams who reached the scene and extinguished the flames.

In another case, a fire erupted at a soft board Godown near Asmat Public School, Nisar Factory, Sundar Road. Rescue teams reached the spot on information and extinguished the blaze.

Finally, a dispensary also caught fire in Garhi Shahu. The dispensary was run by railway authorities. No loss of life or injury was reported in the incident.

Rescue spokesperson Muhammad Farooq requested citizens to take precautionary measures to avoid such incidents in future.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 16^th, 2018.