Four firefighters killed during rescue operation in Karachi

• Buildings collapsed due to being debilitated after burning for hours.
• Injured include 11 firefighters and two other people.
• Sindh governor orders immediate medical assistance for injured.

KARACHI: Four firefighters were crushed to death while 13 others were injured during a rescue operation in the New Karachi fire incident as the burnt structures of the affected factories caved in on Wednesday night.

Police said two factories in New Karachi's industrial area had caught fire. The firefighting teams and rescue personnel launched the cooling process but both buildings collapsed due to being debilitated after burning for hours.

As per details, one of the factories manufactured towels and the other manufactured spare parts for automobiles. The injured include 11 firefighters and two other people.

Later, the bodies of the deceased firefighters, identified as Mohsin, Afzal, Sohail and Khalid Shehzad, were taken out of the debris.

Taking notice of the matter, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori contacted Karachi Administrator Saifur Rehman and ordered immediate medical assistance for the injured, the spokesperson said. 

The inferno comes exactly a month after a multi-storey building on Karachi's main artery Sharea Faisal went up in flames. 

The blaze had been rated as a third-degree fire that erupted in a billboard on top of the building.

According to Chief Fire Officer Ishtiaq Ahmed, many offices were located in the commercial building. He said that the panaflex on the building caught fire due to a short circuit that engulfed the entire building as well.

Assistant Commissioner Ferozabad Umamah Solangi said that no loss of life was reported as the building was empty.