The death toll from a devastating fire at Karachi’s Gul Plaza rose to 28 on Tuesday as rescue teams continued searching the smouldering building, with 81 people still missing.
Talking to Geo News, police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed said that 28 bodies have been brought to the Civil Hospital so far and samples of 50 families have been received for DNA profiling and cross-matching.
The port city’s biggest fire in over a decade started late on Saturday at Gul Plaza, which houses 1,200 shops in a multi-storey complex spread across an area larger than a football field.
The blaze in Karachi’s historic centre raged for more than 24 hours before it was extinguished.
The police surgeon said that the number of missing people stands at 81, adding that some names in the list were repetitive and that 74 of the missing people have been confirmed.
The police surgeon said that all the samples of family members of missing persons have been sent to the Sindh Forensic DNA Laboratory, adding that the DNA tests of the bodies would be conducted at the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences at the University of Karachi.
She further said that samples have been obtained from 14 bodies, and the identification of eight bodies has been completed.
Meanwhile, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori proposed to relocate the affected traders to the parking plaza.
Talking to a delegation of the business community, the governor said: “The parking plaza is lying vacant. It is proposed that the affected traders be shifted there.”
“We must learn from this tragedy,” he said, adding that if such a dangerous plaza has been built or is being built in the city, it should be stopped.
Seperately, Karachi South Deputy Commissioner Javed Nabi Khoso said rescue teams have cleared the ground and first floors of the multi-story shopping mall.
He added: “Search and clearance operations are continuing in the upper floors of the building.”
The deputy commissioner said rescue teams were trying to gain access to the second and third floors by cutting through grills.
‘Fire safety audit report submitted to CM after two years’
Sindh Local Government Minister Nasir Hussain Shah has said that a report about the fire safety audit of Karachi buildings conducted in January 2024 was submitted to Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on January 19, 2026.
The audit was conducted by Fire Department and the KMC in line with the directions of Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab. The audit identified 266 buildings that failed to meet the requirements as prescribed under the fire safety regulations.
Speaking on Geo News programme Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath, the LG minister said that CM Murad expressed displeasure over the prolonged delay in submitting the audit report.
Calling the Gul Plaza incident “an eye-opener,” the minister said the provincial government would take measures to avert such incidents in the future.
The CM has directed the installation of fire alarms in all the buildings, he added. The minister said that they were in close contact with the Association of Builders and Developers (Abad).
Separately, Abad Chairman Muhammad Hassan Bakshi said fire safety measures should be taken on a regular basis.
Talking about a recent letter written by the SBCA, the Abad chairman said that even if they want to take measures related to fire safety, it cannot be done in three days.
In its letter, the SBCA instructed the Abad members to “immediately comply with the fire safety deficiencies highlighted in the audit reports within three days.”
’24 out of 26 gates closed’
Touching upon the Gul Plaza incident while speaking on the National Assembly floor today, Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) Shehla Raza said that it was not necessary for the province’s chief minister and ministers to reach the incident site.
“The most important thing is for the rescue [teams] to arrive there,” said Raza.
Acknowledging the traffic issue, the PPP leader admitted poor management and revealed that 24 out of the total 26 gates of Gul Plaza were in fact closed.
Expanding on the building’s history, Raza said that the plaza was built in 1980 with 180 shops in its basement and 405 shops on the ground floor.
In 1998, she added, the decision was made to establish shops in the parking area as well as the corridor.
Meanwhile, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) MNA Farooq Sattar called for the Gul Plaza incident to be declared a national tragedy.
“Karachi has been giving 65% of [country’s] revenue for 75 years,” remarked Sattar.
Questioning the government about the place of Karachi in its priorities, the lawmaker called for an investigation committee to be formed and the operationalisation of the Department of Civil Defence.
“Karachi should be given priority in national policies,” stressed the MQM-P leader. –Agencies
