Death toll rises to 14 in Gul Plaza blaze

The death toll from the devastating fire at Karachi’s Gul Plaza shopping complex has risen to 14, as rescue teams recovered more bodies during an ongoing search and recovery operation, officials said on Monday.

A massive fire at Gul Plaza on MA Jinnah Road has turned into one of Karachi’s most serious emergencies in recent years, as rescue teams continue efforts to trace dozens of missing people. After more than 34 hours of intense firefighting, Chief Fire Officer Muhammad Humayun Khan confirmed that the blaze has finally been brought under control, though cooling operations are still underway.

Authorities revealed that at least 14 people have been confirmed dead, while the whereabouts of 59 others remain unknown. Officials fear that many of them may have perished inside the commercial centre, where flames continued to reappear at multiple spots even after daybreak on Monday.

Meanwhile, the business community has expressed deep shock over the tragedy. World Memon Organisation President Salman Iqbal urged authorities to provide immediate relief to affected traders, noting that the late arrival of fire tenders and water shortages severely disrupted rescue efforts. He stressed that thousands of traders and labourers have lost their life savings, as hundreds of