Death toll from Rizvia building collapse rises to 26

Rescue operation expected to be completed by Sunday evening

KARACHI: As rescue services retrieved several more bodies from the rubble of the residential building that collapsed in Karachi's Rizvia Society, the death toll from the tragedy rose to 26 on Sunday.

Many of the injured have been discharged from the hospital after receiving first aid.

The rescue officials said the building may have collapsed after a large water-tank on the top floor fell. They feared it has damaged adjacant buildings as well.

Narrow alleyways restricted the access of heavy machinery to the disaster site, which meant that much of the rubble was being cleared manually, slowing down rescue efforts. The rescue operation is expected to be completed by Sunday evening.

Case registered

An FIR citing negligence, damage to private and public property and deaths due to the incident, was registered against the building’s owner at the Rizvia police station on behalf of the government.

FIR said the owner, Javed Khan, committed criminal negligence in the construction of the building, due to which the structure had collapsed. It further states that the building was constructed in violation of regulations, for which various government officials are to blame.

Police sources told The Express Tribune that Khan was also injured in the incident, and was taken to the hospital. When the police tried to locate him, he had fled.

A thorough probe

Sindh Information, Local Government and Housing and Town Planning Minister Nasir Hussain Shah, meanwhile, asserted that severe action would be taken against anyone found to be involved in the tragedy.

Talking to the media, he promised a thorough probe into the ‘regrettable incident’ and stated that action would be taken against whoever was found to be responsible, whether it was the builder or the SBCA. He further said that the government would ensure that no such incident occurred in the future.

At risk buildings

In January, the city administration directed the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to vacate the 382 residential buildings declared ‘dangerous’.

The majority of the earmarked buildings are located in Saddar, where 295 residential buildings have been declared dangerous. Meanwhile, 44 buildings are in Lyari. Out of the 382 dangerous buildings, 339 were located in South district, 14 in East district and 10 in Central district.

SBCA official Askhar Dawar lamented that evacuation notices had been served to the buildings’ owners but they were not implementing the orders of the building control authority.