Couple succumbs to cylinder blast injuries

A couple who had sustained injuries when a gas cylinder exploded at their residence in Ibrahim Hyderi last week passed away during treatment on Friday night.

Mukhtiar Ahmed, his wife Najma and their three children, Ramsha, Alisha and Mudassir, had been rushed to Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital's burns ward with burn injuries following the explosion. Ahmed and Najma succumbed to their wounds at the hospital.

Meanwhile, a man who had been injured in a gas explosion at a house in New Karachi earlier this week succumbed to his wounds while undergoing treatment at Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital on Friday night.

The deceased was identified as Adil Hussain and the body was handed over to the family after medico-legal formalities.

According to Bilal Colony SHO Farjad, Hussain's eight-year-old son Mazhar had been killed on the spot in the blast, while his wife, three other children and another woman were injured as well.

The intensity of the blast had caused the upper floor of the house to collapse, while also igniting a fire. The injured were shifted to the burns ward at Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital after receiving first aid at Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

According to the SHO, the police were initially told that a gas cylinder had exploded in the house. However, the police later called the bomb disposal unit, which determined the blast was caused by a gas leak.

Shop owner gunned down

A poultry shop owner was shot dead while his employee was left critically wounded after they attempted to resist robbers in Korangi on Saturday.

Rescuers rushed the two victims to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where the shop owner succumbed to his injuries while his employee remained in critical condition.

According to the police, two armed men on a motorcycle barged into the shop and tried to loot cash and other valuables. When the shop owner, 30-year-old Aslam, and his employee Zohaib Munir tried to put up resistance, the robbers opened fire at them and fled with looted cash.

The police said the culprits had used a motorcycle without a licence plate, adding that three empty bullet shells were recovered from the crime scene and sent to the forensic division for ballistic cross-matching.

Moreover, the cops said they were unable to obtain CCTV footage of the incident as the electricity supply in the area was suspended at the time. They added that they would record Munir’s statement to try to obtain leads in the case when possible.

A case has been registered, while further investigation is underway.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 6^th, 2020.