Another gas explosion

In the pre-dawn stillness of sehri on Sunday, North Nazimabad neighbourhood of Karachi jolted by a loud bang. The magnanimity of the explosion, at Bismillah Residency near Five Star Chowrangi, was unexpected. Residents across a radius of up to eight kilometres are reported to have heard the blast, initially convinced it was something far more sinister. Cars parked beneath the building were reduced to wreckage. Two women, aged 70 and 40, sustained burns exceeding 80% of their bodies. A child was also reported injured. But most tragic of all, a 15-year-old boy lost his life in the explosion.

While authorities have pointed to a gas cylinder as the likely trigger, multiple sources suggest the explosion may have been caused by an illegally installed gas compressor. If true, this transforms the tragedy into a catastrophe authored by sheer, inexcusable negligence. Gas compressors are banned in residential buildings. They are neither a grey area nor a technicality. They are ticking devices masquerading as a solution to low gas pressure, which is an understandably frustrating problem that Karachi's residents have battled for years. But the answer to the city's gas woes cannot, under any circumstances, be an illegal compressor stuffed into a residential flat surrounded by sleeping families.

This is not the first blast of its kind and without meaningful enforcement, it will not be the last. Authorities issue bans and notices go unserved and buildings remain unchecked - all while ordinary people pay the price in blood. In the midst of the fasting month, during a time of reflection and gratitude, families are instead mourning in hospitals. This calamity was a result of both civic negligence and regulatory failure. It is time we confronted the root causes - inadequate gas supply and lax enforcement of safety codes.