As hopes of finding more survivors fast dwindled by yesterday evening, rescuers pulled out a teenager alive from under the debris of the collapsed polythene bag factory at the Sundar Industrial Estate near Lahore. This happened some 50 hours after the building had completely caved in.
The rescuers traced the survivor, identified as 18-year-old Shahid from Khanewal, with the help of a search scanner in a portion of the factory which was being used to house workers. He is said to be in a rather good condition.
The rescuers told the media that they had also found 10 more bodies from under the wreckage of the four-storey building, raising the death toll in Wednesday’s factory collapse to 34.
At least another 24 workers are feared to be still trapped under the rubble, but the exact number of people still trapped remains unclear. More than 100 survivors have been rescued since the building collapse. Lahore DCO Mohammad Usman told media that they were hopeful of finding more survivors and hence the site was being cleared slowly.
A rescue worker said that the people trapped in the wreckage, particularly the young ones, could be rescued alive 72 hours after the collapse if they hadn’t suffered serious injuries.
“Shahid must be extremely lucky for lying in a hollow area where he was getting oxygen through cracks and holes,” he said. Doctors said that the condition of Shahid, who has been taken to Jinnah Hospital, was stable, but he was showing visible symptoms of severe dehydration.
Earlier in the day, the rescuers used heavy cutters and drillers to make their way to the building’s inaccessible portions. The next 24 hours are said to be crucial for saving the lives of the trapped victims.
