A powerful explosion took place in Allah Noor Apartment in Karachi’s densely-populated Gulshan-e-Iqbal area, last Wednesday morning, killing more than five people and wounding many others. The deadly blast that took place at a ground plus four storied residential unit, badly damaged the building infrastructure. The reason for the blast was wrongfully attributed to the leakage of natural gas. However, there is ample evidence to suggest that this was not the case, in light of the below mentioned facts.
As an established protocol, SSGC’s emergency teams rushed to the blast site and as a precautionary safety measure, instantly switched OFF main gas supply to the building. The teams found out that there was no damage to any service line, valve and gas meter at the site of the blast. All gas pipelines and all domestic gas meters along with three commercial meters installed at the blast site also remained unharmed. It must also be noted that of late neither SSGC’s 24/7 operational 1199 helpline nor the Company’s social media pages received any gas-related complaint from the residents of the said apartment.
It is also important to point out that the commercial bank below the building did not have a SSGC gas connection. As television reports showed, residents and eye witnesses categorically dispelled any sign of gas leak since no one sensed a pungent smell of a leak. CCTV footage clearly showed a powerful explosion that had no trappings of blasts, usually associated with gas leakage. In fact, if it was the case of a leakage, there would have been a massive fire following the blast, as well. However, all one saw was the crumbling debris and shreds of glass and no blackened and burnt out infrastructure.
It is pertinent to note that as per the directives of Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority, gas leakage taking place outside one’s house or business must be immediately reported to the Company’s 1199 Helpline for which the concerned company departments have to respond in the quickest possible time. Moreover, SSGC teams regularly patrol in their respective zones to effectively handle any emergency situation.
