KARACHI: A five-storey residential building collapsed in Lyari’s Baghdadi area, claiming the lives of 14 people, including three women and a child, in a devastating tragedy.
According to initial reports, the building was completely reduced to rubble. Rescue teams have so far recovered 16 bodies and reported nine injuries. Authorities fear that 25 to 30 people may still be trapped under the debris.
Rescue and relief operations are underway, with emergency services working tirelessly to recover those trapped beneath the rubble.
Rescue officials said rescue operations have been launched as soon as the building collapsed, fearing more people under the rubble of the building, which is undergoing rescue operations to evacuate.
However, rescue activities are facing difficulties due to the closure of a mobile signal.
Rescue officials said that 6 families were residents in the building, heavy machinery is undergoing debris, while 2 and 7 -storey building with a falling building have also been evacuated.
Three portions were set up on each floor of the falling building. The building was declared a dangerous 3 years ago, but the residents did not leave the building, nor did the administration take action.
Rescue officials have cut off the power and gas lines of the affected building.
Commissioner Karachi Syed Hassan Naqvi has stated that the ongoing rescue operation following the collapse of the five-storey building in Lyari’s Baghdadi area may take up to 24 hours to complete.
He urged residents living in dilapidated buildings to relocate voluntarily, emphasizing that authorities cannot forcibly evict anyone from their homes.
The commissioner also announced plans to hold a meeting with the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to address the issue of illegal constructions in the city.
Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner South Karachi Javed Khoso said that residents of the affected building were given notices in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
He said a special team has been formed to inspect dangerous structures across the city. Out of 107 identified buildings, 21 have been declared highly dangerous, and 14 of those have already been vacated.
