Centaurus Mall, towers sealed after fire

Shopping mall’s management blames ‘outsiders’ for sabotage

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration has sealed the Centaurus Mall and the three residential buildings after a fire broke out in the shopping centre a day earlier.

Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon said that the shopping centre and nearby residential buildings will remain sealed until the technical team files a report on the structural capability of the towers after the fire.

Earlier on Sunday, the fire broke out in the food court of the mall in the evening, with footage showing roaring flames while it was packed with visitors.

Emergency services put out the fire and everyone in the shopping centre was evacuated safely and no casualties were reported.

The first meeting of the inquiry committee formed by Islamabad’s deputy commissioner was held after the mall was sealed and residents evacuated the three residential buildings.

The committee also visited the Centaurus Mall and also investigated the mall management. At the same time, the committee also reviewed the functionality of the fire protection system and alarms in the multi-storey business-cum-residential building.

Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon said that action will be taken as per law after the inquiry. He said that if a trader wanted to take his valuables out of the mall, he will be allowed but the mall will not be allowed to open until the report of the inquiry committee.

He said that human life was more important to them than all other things.

The fire had erupted on the mall’s fourth floor, where the food court is located. The fire quickly spread to the upper floors and impacted the lower floors. The glass and other materials began to collapse due to the intensity of the fire.

The fire was brought under control after a two-hour effort by the ICT administration, police, and other emergency agencies.

A massive 66-foot crane was used to extinguish the blaze while the people stranded in the mall were escorted out from the emergency gate of the mall.

After extinguishing the fire, the team conducted a mopping operation inside the mall.

Meanwhile, the Centaurus Mall management registered a case at the Margalla Police Station under section 436 stating that unknown perpetrators set fire to the shopping mall for unexplained reasons.

Read Islamabad's Centaurus Mall fire brought under control

The mall’s management said that Tower-A was completely engulfed in the fire before rescuers brought the fire under control.

Separately, at a press conference, ministers belonging to the Azad Jammu and Kashmir government and the Centaurus Mall management said that a small fire had erupted in the mall, which was immediately extinguished by their staff.

“Both of our towers are stable and secure. The fire broke out in a small kitchen. The news which was spread about the mall fire was totally bogus,” they said. They said that the mall was the centre of economic activity in the federal capital, where overseas Pakistanis have also invested a significant amount of money.

Azad Jammu and Kashmir Minister Wajid said that it was not a good idea to close the tower. He said that businessmen believe that sealing the entire tower owing to a small fire was not a wise decision.

He further said that Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas is the owner of Centaurus Tower and the towers had been sealed as retaliation against him for supporting the PTI.

He said that “we will stage a protest at 3 pm on Tuesday if the Centaurus Mall was not open.

He alleged that “Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his ministers may have been involved in this incident. We have concerns that a Model Townlike incident could have happened”.

Traders assured of swift report preparation Meanwhile, Islamabad Chief Commissioner Muhammad Usman on Monday assured traders that he would expedite the work on the post-fire structure stability report on the Centaurus Mall.

He also allowed the Centaurus Mall management to arrange the cleaning of the building besides allowing owners to collect their possessions from the mall, the Islamabad commissioner said while talking to a delegation of the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) that called on him to discuss the fire incident in the mall.

Meanwhile, a local court in Islamabad on Monday granted one-day physical remand of a security guard of the Centaurs Mall who had been taken into custody after he resisted the local administration during the rescue work.

Police produced the security guard before the court of Judicial Magistrate Mujahid Rahim and sought his five-day physical remand.

The court allowed a one-day physical remand of the accused. The security guard will be produced before the court on Tuesday (today).

WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM APP