At least eight people were killed, six others critically injured and 15 reported missing after a massive fire broke out at the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) plaza on Thursday.
The fire, which spread to five floors of the nine-storey LDA plaza on Edgerton Road, had not been brought under control till the filing of this report.
Tragically, four of the victims plunged to their deaths after waiting in vain to be rescued for four hours as they sought shelter on balconies and window sills. The bodies of two other victims were pulled by rescuers from the ninth floor.
The fire erupted due to an electrical short circuit in two rooms that had been locked for several months on the seventh floor of the building, according to LDA staff and officials.
The fire engulfed the seventh floor completely and spread to the eighth and ninth floors. Some of the staff present managed to escape to the roof of the building from where rescue and army helicopters lifted them to safety.
Five helicopters were called in for the rescue mission, and the district government’s fire fighting staff, also took part in the rescue mission.
DCO Lahore Rizwan Mehboob said, “The air produced by the hovering of the choppers actually spread the fire more, but we made the decision of rescuing people as it was more important than saving the building.”
“The death toll increased due to the delay in evacuation of the building and since rescue teams were informed of the fire 45 minutes after it erupted. We received the first call at precisely 11:56 am whereas the fire had broken out at around 11:00am,” DG rescue services Dr Rizwan said.
He said the lack of hydrants, fire detection systems and alarms played a crucial role in the worsening of the situation and added that antennas and telecommunication companies’ towers on the roof impeded the evacuation and rescue process as helicopters were not able to land there.
Maryam Kiyani, the additional director general of the LDA headquarters, said that the local fire fighting team of the LDA building initially tried to control the fire themselves but once it spread they called rescue services.
LDA staffers who were evacuated from the building’s ninth floor said that at least eight other staff members had fallen unconscious due to smoke inhalation while one had died.
DG LDA Dr Ejaz Munir said rescue teams only had two turn table ladders, which can only rise up to 100 feet.
The rescue teams used fire-retardant foam to douse the fire but were unable control it.
According to rescue officials, 15 people were evacuated while they claimed to not have any count of missing people. They further said that those who fell unconscious due to smoke inhalation would have passed away by now.
The deceased were identified as Talib Hussain, Muhammad Asif, Riaz, Iqbal, Ikramul haq and Ghulam Muhammad.
Those injured were transferred to the Gangaram, Services and Mayo hospitals.
Several bodies remain inside the building, including some that are clearly visible on the seventh and eight floor balconies. Fire fighters who entered the building’s seventh floor to retrieve the bodies were forced to return due to the thick smoke.
Meanwhile, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has taken notice of reports regarding the burning of precious records, including revenue records, in the LDA Plaza fire incident.
NAB Chairman Fasih Bokhari has directed NAB Punjab to probe the incident.
NAB will contact relevant departments including Revenue, LDA, City District Government, Lahore Rescue 1122 and other stakeholders in this regard.
DG LDA Dr Ejaz Munir said that financial records and other important records, such as the Metro Bus records, as alleged by some politicians, were not kept in the building.
“Only administrational record was kept at this office, while records which some claimed were in the LDA are kept at the Johar Town office,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 10th, 2013.