LOC10:37
07:37 GMT
ISLAMABAD, Jan 22 (KUNA) -- The death toll from a fire at a shopping center in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi rose to 61 on Thursday after rescuers recovered 30 bodies from a gutted shop while searching the wreckage.
The fire broke out last week at the Gul Plaza shopping center on MA Jinnah Road and continued for 36 hours, causing parts of the ground-plus-three-storey building to collapse and hampering relief efforts, officials said.
Following cooling measures, rescue and search operations resumed to recover bodies trapped under the debris, Karachi Police Chief Inspector General Asad Raza said, noting that the remains were found inside a crockery shop on the plaza's mezzanine floor.
He added that debris removal operations had been suspended to prioritize body recovery, while Police Surgeon Dr. Samia Syed said examinations of additional remains were underway, warning the death toll could rise further and noting that more than 50 families had provided DNA samples for identification.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah expressed grief over the rising death toll and ordered the immediate transfer of recovered bodies to hospitals, while President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Mohammad Sharif conveyed condolences, stressing the need to strictly enforce fire safety laws and strengthen inspections to prevent similar incidents. (end)
sbk.ahm