KARACHI: 11 people were killed and at least 70 were injured, out of which 30 appear to be in critical situation, after a fire broke out in a private hotel at Shahrah-e-Faisal on Monday.
According to hotel sources, the fire broke out at 3:00AM in the kitchen, located in the basement of the hotel and was spread through the air conditioning ducts, engulfing a major part of the hotel in flames.
Firefighters were able to douse the fire after four hours with the help of three fire tenders.
About 100 people were reportedly trapped inside the hotel and were evacuated by rescue workers, using a crane.
Mayor Karachi Waseem Akhtar visited the site of the incident and while talking to media, he said rescue work was hampered due to absence of emergency exits and fire alarms.
Dr. Seemi Jamali, Executive Director at the Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Complex (JPMC) told the press that 30 of the victims, who were brought to the hospital were in critical condition and are currently being treated for asphyxiation.
She confirmed that at least 11 bodies were brought to the JPMC morgue. They included seven men and four women.
More than 70 people received treatment at the hospital, she added. The ones with minor injuries were discharged.
Among the injured were foreigners staying at the hotel, including some Chinese officials.
Additional police surgeon Dr Kaleem Sheikh said four doctors and hotel security manager are among the dead.
According to Faisal Edhi, the foreigners present inside the hotel could not understand Urdu because of which some of the rescue effort was hampered.
Guests inside the hotel, desperate to escape the blaze, jumped from windows and scrambled down knotted bedsheets and curtains to leave the building.
SSP District South Karachi Saqib Ismail Memon said rescue teams reached the site promptly and broke window panes to rescue those trapped inside the hotel.
The official said the fire broke out in the kitchen and spread from there, carried along by the air conditioning system in the building.
One of the survivors from the hotel fire spoke to the media stating that she thought she won’t be able to make it out alive until rescue teams arrived.
Chief Fire Officer Saeed Jadoon said the hotel security manager on duty died while attempting to contain the fire and save others from the blaze.
The official said the rescue work was completed in three and a half hours and 11 floors of the hotel were all searched and cleared.
Pakistani batsmen Sohaib Maqsood, Umar Amin and Hammad Azam were present in the hotel at the time of the tragedy. UBL cricketers were also staying at the hotel and were evacuated from their rooms following the deadly fire.
Bowler Yasin Murtaza jumped from the second floor to the ground and fractured his ankle. Karamat Ali was injured by broken glass, according to sources.
The cricketers are in Karachi for the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy tournament. Following the incident PCB postponed the third day’s play of the ongoing match, as many of the cricketers were too shaken to play.
The cricketers helped in rescue efforts. UBL team manager Nadeem Khan said Sohaib Maqsood and others helped rescue families trapped inside the hotel. The cricketers also helped some Chinese officials trapped inside the building to evacuate.
