Fire guts Quetta shopping centre, 120 shops destroyed

Blaze erupts before dawn; no casualties reported

QUETTA:

A massive fire swept through a shopping centre on Fatah Muhammad Road, a key commercial area of Quetta, destroying more than 120 shops and causing losses worth billions of rupees, officials said on Wednesday.

The fire broke out between 4.30am and 5.00am on Tuesday, reportedly due to a short circuit, and quickly engulfed the entire shopping centre.

No casualties were reported. However, three firefighters lost consciousness during the operation, and authorities said an assessment of the financial losses was underway.

Police reached the scene and safely evacuated 14 hairdressers and a security guard. Firefighting teams from the Quetta Metropolitan Corporation initially responded, deploying 13 fire engines. Due to the intensity of the blaze, additional fire tenders from the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) and the Frontier Corps (FC) were also called in.

Massive fire swept through a shopping centre in Quetta on Tuesday destroying more than 120 shops PHOTO: EXPRESS

Deputy Commissioner Quetta Mehrullah Badini said the fire started in a single shop before spreading rapidly to neighbouring outlets, including stores selling computers, mobile phones, electrical goods, garments and shoes.

A total of 70 firefighters from the police, Metropolitan Corporation, PDMA, WASA and FC took part in the operation, which lasted around five hours.