A catastrophic fire tore through Gul Plaza, a crowded multi-storey shopping mall in Karachi’s historic Saddar district, on Saturday evening, claiming at least 27 lives and leaving more than 70 people still missing. The blaze erupted suddenly and spread with terrifying speed across the densely packed complex, home to roughly 1,200 shops selling everything from clothing and electronics to household goods. Flammable materials, narrow aisles, and poor ventilation turned the market into a deadly trap. Survivors recounted harrowing scenes: choking black smoke that reduced visibility to almost nothing, deafening screams, people trampling over one another in panic, and desperate attempts to find a way out—only to encounter locked metal gates and blocked emergency staircases.
Official accounts and eyewitness testimony have exposed glaring safety violations at the heart of the disaster. Of the building’s 16 designated exits, only three were unlocked when the fire broke out, as management had already secured most entrances in preparation for the mall’s routine closing time. Several trapped victims managed to call relatives from inside, begging for help in final, heart-wrenching messages before losing contact. Rescue teams faced immense challenges: the structure is now dangerously unstable, with sections of flooring and walls collapsed, and thick smoke still billowing from the wreckage days later. Many recovered bodies are badly charred, requiring DNA testing and forensic identification, prolonging the agony for families gathered outside the cordoned-off site. Initial emergency response was also criticised, with the first fire brigade call reportedly arriving more than 30 minutes after smoke was first noticed—by which time the upper floors were already fully engulfed.
The tragedy has ignited widespread public outrage, protests, and demands for immediate accountability in Pakistan’s largest city. Relatives of the victims, survivors, and local residents have taken to the streets near the charred ruins, chanting slogans against negligence and corruption. Political leaders from across the spectrum have called for a thorough investigation and sweeping reforms, including stricter enforcement of building codes, mandatory functional fire-safety systems, regular inspections of commercial structures, and better training for emergency services. This is far from an isolated incident in Karachi—ageing markets and multi-level plazas have repeatedly turned into death traps due to illegal extensions, overloaded electrical wiring, absent sprinklers, and routine disregard for safety regulations. As grief-stricken families continue their agonising wait for news and answers, one question echoes across the city: how many more lives must be lost before fire safety is finally treated as a non-negotiable priority rather than an optional expense?
