Firefighters bring under control factory fire in Karachi's Landhi after 20 hours

KARACHI: After a struggle of 20 hours, firefighters brought under control the fire that erupted and engulfed three factories in the city's Landhi area on Sunday.

According to fire brigade officials, 15 fire tenders, 12 water bowsers, and one snorkel took part in the extinguishing process.

Due to the intensity of the fire, two cardboard factories and one garment factory were destroyed while another plastic manufacturing factory also faced severe damage. The third factory suffered 60% damage, said firebrigade officials.

The officials said that the cooling process will be completed by tonight, adding that the two damaged factories have been declared dangerous.

‘Fire stopped from progressing further’

Earlier, Spokesperson of Landhi Export Processing Zone, Malik Abdul Aziz, said the fire has been stopped from progressing further to cause more damage to the surrounding factories and buildings.

Addressing the media, Aziz said that the initial information suggested that the fire started due to a short-circuit in one of the factories. 

"We suffered a financial loss but our lives got saved," he said.

The spokesman told that the fire has engulfed three factories, adding that the fire engulfed the cardboard factory then extended to the other two – a garments and a plastic- factories.

Lauding the performance of those who participated in the rescue operation, Aziz said that the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, Pakistan Navy, and others assisted well during the extinguishing and evacuation process.

At the EPZ in Landhi, the fire first started in a cardboard factory which later on spread to the neighbouring factories around 6pm on Sunday.

At the time of the incident, locals and foreigners were present inside the factory when the fire broke out, officials said.

The blaze — categorised as Level 3 — had engulfed the surrounding three factories of cardboard, plastic, and textile, fire brigade officials said.