Five people died and eight others were in serious condition after a heavy fire swept through a shopping mall in Karachi on Saturday morning. The blaze suddenly broke out on second floor of the building but very soon it spread to fourth, fifth and sixth floors of multi-storey RJ Mall, a shopping centre located on Rashid Minhas Road. According to fire brigade authorities, a faulty generator placed on the roof of the shopping centre was the cause of the fire.

Rescue officials said that two vehicles of the fire brigade were busy extinguishing the flames while two more fire tenders and a snorkel were rushed to the spot after receiving information about the fire. Later the number of fire-fighting vehicles rose to 10 including two snorkels and eight fire tendersMore than 50 people were rescued from the burning building but a number of people were still trapped inside, said rescue officials. The injured people were shifted to a nearby hospital where condition of eight among them was said to be serious.

Due to the smoke filling the upper floor of the building, rescuers faced difficulties in carrying out the relief operation. Later, the fire spread to the lower floor of the building, said the fire-fighters. The rescue officials later said the fire was brought under control to a great extent and the cooling process was underway on one of the floors.

 
Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)