A woman looked for her missing relative Wednesday at a morgue in Karachi, following a garment factory fire Tuesday.
More than 300 people were killed Tuesday when
fires engulfed two factories in two major cities, officials said,
renewing concerns about lax building safety measures and dismal working
conditions for factory workers in Pakistan.
The fires broke out Tuesday evening and swept through a shoe factory
in the eastern city of Lahore and a garment factory in the southern port
city of Karachi.
The fire in Karachi killed at least 289 people, said government
officials and rescue workers, who were still trying to retrieve bodies
from the charred building Wednesday.
Roshan Ali Sheikh, the commissioner of Karachi, said the death toll
is expected to rise. Dozens of bodies were thought to be inside the
building, local media reported.
About 1,500 people worked in the factory on the outskirts of Karachi, the economic hub of the country.
Officials said panicked workers were trapped inside the multistory
building, which had just one exit.
All the other doors had been locked, a
common practice to ensure that workers do not leave the premises before
their shift ends.
Officials said the fire in Lahore killed 25 people and was caused by a
generator that caught fire and ignited chemicals.
They said the shoe
factory was set up illegally and made to look like a residential house
from the outside.
No comments:
Post a Comment