Double trouble: Nobody hurt as two powerful blasts rock Karachi

The bombs went off near the FTC building on Shahrae Faisal and a house in Orangi Town .

KARACHI:

Two powerful blasts rocked different parts of Karachi Monday night. Though there were no casualties, the incidents spread fear and panic among the city’s residents.

The first explosion occurred near the FTC building on Shahrae Faisal. As soon as the bomb went off, a heavy contingent of law enforcers and members of the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS) converged at the scene and cordoned off the area.

According to a BDS expert, an improvised explosive device had been planted below the FTC flyover, adding that it has yet to be ascertained whether the bomb was triggered by a remote-controlled device, such as a cellphone.

He added that the bomb contained between two to three kilogrammes of highly explosive material and ball bearings. Though nobody was killed or injured, the blast created a wide crater in the road.

While talking to The Express Tribune, senior investigation officer SSP Raja Omar Khattab said that the bomb was planted below the flyover. Just across the street, in the nearby Bizerta Lines area, people were protesting against the bomb attack in Quetta on Saturday. But SSP Khattab added that the motive behind the incident has yet to be ascertained.

A little later, another powerful explosion rocked Orangi Town’s Frontier Colony, within the jurisdiction of the Pirabad police station.

DSP Zahid Hussain said that the bomb had been planted right outside an unoccupied house owned by a local Awami National Party leader. Luckily, the house was empty.

The occupant had left about six months ago after he was threatened by terrorists who were demanding extortion money from him.

The officer said that nobody was hurt by the explosion, while a house was partially damaged.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 19^th, 2013.