Rescuers discover 30 bodies in single shop in Gul Plaza

KARACHI:

In a tragic turn of events, at least 30 bodies were recovered from a gutted shop as rescuers searched the wreckage of Karachi's Gul Plaza on Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 61.

Karachi Deputy Inspector General South Asad Raza said the remains of 30 humans had been recovered from a crockery shop located on the mezzanine floor of the plaza.

He noted that the debris removal had been suspended and priority was being given to retrieving bodies.

After the fire broke out, people locked themselves inside the shop in an attempt to save their lives. Their last mobile phone locations were also traced to the same spot.

Deputy Commissioner South Javed Nabi Khoso also confirmed that 20 to 25 bodies were recovered from a crockery shop on the mezzanine floor, adding that the remains were in a severely deteriorated condition and were found during the search operation.

Rescue officials said multiple human body parts were recovered from a shop located on the ground floor of the plaza, which were being shifted to hospital.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah expressed grief over the rising death toll and directed that the newly recovered bodies be immediately shifted to hospital.

He ordered that debris removal be halted until all bodies were retrieved and that full facilities be provided to the bereaved families for the identification and transfer of the bodies.

"Human life has no substitute, but the government will not leave the affected families alone," the chief minister said.

According to police surgeon Dr Samia Syed, the examination of additional remains recovered from the rubble is underway, and the death toll could rise further.

Earlier, the police surgeon told Express News that 28 bodies had been received, of which six were initially intact and identifiable. One victim, identified as Tanveer, was confirmed through his CNIC, while DNA samples from the remaining bodies were sent to the Sindh Forensic DNA and Serology Laboratory.

Dr Samia said three more bodies were identified overnight and had been handed over to heirs, while three to four additional DNA reports were expected within hours. She noted that the intense fire had severely damaged DNA, making identification difficult.

The police surgeon maintained that the Sindh Forensic DNA Laboratory was working round the clock, and observed that most of the remains were fragmentary, which required more time for DNA extraction.

Dr Samia said only six to seven bodies were intact. In total, DNA samples were collected from 51 relatives, with priority given to parents and children. If parents or children were not available, samples were taken from siblings.

The conflagration that broke out at the metropolitan MA Jinnah Mall on Saturday night continued unabated for 36 hours. According to the rescuers said nearly 60 per cent of the shopping plaza had collapsed, while the remaining structure remains too fragile to navigate safely.

The mall was a ground-plus-three-storey building with 1,200 shops spread over 8,000 square yards.

Gul Plaza building was constructed in the 1980s, while a revised plan was approved in 1998. Later, under the Regularisation Amendment Ordinance 2001, the building was formally regularised in 2003 in accordance with rules and regulations, and the owner obtained a completion certificate on April 14, 2003.