Rescue teams were still sifting through the blackened remains of a major shopping mall in Karachi on Tuesday, as fears grew for 63 people who remain unaccounted for after a devastating fire that claimed at least 21 lives.
Firefighters and emergency workers worked carefully through piles of ash and twisted debris at Gul Plaza, once one of the city’s busiest shopping destinations. Authorities believe most of those still missing may not have survived, and efforts are now focused on recovering bodies and identifying victims.
The blaze erupted late Saturday and rapidly engulfed the massive complex, which housed around 1,200 small, family-run shops selling everything from wedding attire and toys to household goods. Fire crews battled intense flames for nearly two days before finally bringing the inferno under control, though small fires continued to flare up in parts of the ruins.
Among the crowd gathered outside the site was Kosar Bano, whose pain echoed that of many others. Six members of her family had gone to the mall to shop for a wedding. The last message she received from them said they would be home in just 15 minutes. They never returned.
“Now the only hope we have is whatever remains we can find,” she said quietly, her words reflecting the heartbreak shared by dozens of families waiting for answers.
Large sections of the mall, said to be bigger than a football field, collapsed into rubble. Rescue workers carefully collected human remains and sent them for DNA testing in an effort to identify victims. According to police, at least 15 DNA samples had been collected by Monday night.
Rescue 1122 official Rizwan Ahmed confirmed that 21 deaths had been recorded so far, while 63 people were still missing nearly three days after the fire began.
As the search continued, anger grew among relatives and bystanders. Some blamed delays in the rescue operation, while others expressed frustration when the city’s mayor arrived at the scene almost a day after the fire started.
Authorities have promised a full investigation into both the cause of the fire and the emergency response. Police said that at the time of the blaze, 13 of the mall’s 16 exits were locked, raising serious questions about safety measures. Gul Plaza’s management has yet to comment.
This tragedy is being described as Karachi’s worst fire disaster in more than a decade, recalling the 2012 industrial fire that killed over 260 people and was later ruled an act of arson.
As the smoke clears, what remains is not just rubble, but unanswered questions, grieving families, and a city once again forced to confront the cost of negligence. For those waiting outside the ruins, hope is fragile—but it is all they have.
