KARACHI: At least 14 people including the father of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA Alamgir Khan lost their lives while 13 others sustained injuries in a gas explosion that ripped through the building of a private bank situated on a drain near Sher Shah Paracha Chowk in SITE area of Karachi, police said Saturday.
Police spokesperson confirmed that the explosion took place in a gas pipeline, damaging the building of a private bank and several cars parked there.
Moments later, another blast occurred in a gas pipeline at the same place injuring a rescue worker.
Personnel of rescue services and law enforcement agencies rushed the spot and the injured were shifted to Karachi’s Trauma Centre. The blast occurred at 1:50pm, police and eyewitnesses said.
The area has been cordoned off by Rangers and police personnel while the rescue operation is under way.
Eyewitnesses claim that some people are buried underneath the debris of the building. Heavy machinery has been called to remove the debris and rescue any survivor.
PTI Karachi chapter President Khurram Sher Zaman said the father of Alamgir Khan was among those killed in the incident.
According to Sindh Health Minister Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, the death toll has reached 14.
Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Hospital Trauma Centre chief Dr Sabir Memon confirmed the death toll, saying 11 injured are being treated at the health facility, all of them in critical condition. He said that they received eight bodies while six injured succumbed to the injuries during treatment.
Most of the people brought in to the hospital have injuries in the upper torso, hospital officials said.
The police spokesperson said that according to the preliminary report, it seemed that the explosion was caused by gas accumulated in the Nullah over which the bank building was erected. The police feared that many people might be buried under the debris. A team of Sui Southern Gas Company has been dispatched to the site.
At least 14 killed, several injured as blast rocks Karachi's Shershah area
Meanwhile, a bomb disposal squad (BDS) team stated that the accumulated gas in the sewerage line beneath the two-storied building caused the powerful explosion. The rescue officials informed that as many as 14 people were killed and 13 others got injured in the powerful explosion that reduced the Habib Bank building branch into rubble. The adjacent buildings and parked vehicles were also damaged as a result of the blast.
The condition of four injured persons was stated to be critical.
Six of the dead were identified as Maratab Khan, Munawwar Khan, Zeeshan Hassan, Muhammad Yousuf, Inam Ullah, and Shafi Ullah.
Those who sustained injuries included Ghulam Mustafa, Muhammad Arshad, Ghulam Akbar, Jamil Ahmad, Abdul Ghafar, Hammad, Riaz Mehmood, Kashmir Khan, Suba Khan, Abdul Wahab and one unknown person.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Governor Imran Ismail took notice of the blast and expressed grief and concern over the tragedy.
The Chief Minister directed the Karachi commissioner to launch investigation into the incident and send report as soon as possible. He also expressed regret on the deaths and ordered to facilitate the affectees at hospitals. He directed the health secretary to provide necessary facilities to the affected persons who are admitted to the Civil Hospital. He also ordered the administration to reach the locality and hospitals for providing maximum assistance to the affectees.
Meanwhile, Punjab CM Sardar Usman Buzdar has also extended condolences to the bereaved families and said that we are standing with the victims in this difficult time. He further prayed for early recovery of the injured people.
KMC Administrator Murtaza Wahab while expressing his grief over the tragedy directed the health authorities to provide medical facilities to the injured.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Khurram Sher Zaman lamented the loss of human lives in the blast and confirmed that the father of PTI MNA Alamgir Khan was also among those killed in the blast.
However, Member Provincial Assembly and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Raja Azhar said that Alamgir Khan’s father had a showroom in Sher Shah Market.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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