At least 11 people were killed and 50 others injured when a huge fire erupted at Karachi’s Regent Plaza Karachi.
The blaze broke out in the kitchen located at the ground floor of the four-star hotel at the city’s Shahrah-i-Faisal, and swept through the building, trapping scores of hotel guests in their rooms.
Three fire tenders of the fire brigade reached the site and started an operation to rescue the guests. The firefighters were able to contain the fire after three hours, with 11 people having been killed, said a press release issued by Saddar Police Station.
Karachi mayor Waseem Akhtar while speaking to reporters said the cause of the fire could not immediately ascertained.
He said the hotel had “no fire exits or fire alarms”.
Read: Pakistani cricketers Karamat Ali, Yasin Murtaza injured in Regent Plaza Karachi blaze
Dr Seemin Jamali, head of the emergency services at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre while talking to media said, at least 65 people affected by the fire were brought to the emergency department.
TV footage of the incident showed guests at the hotel using bedsheets to climb down from windows.
A survivor, Hamid Ali, told a TV channel. He said the guests were sleeping when the fire broke out.
Among those were people who had fractured bones after jumping from hotel windows to escape, others had been hurt by shattered glass and many were treated for smoke inhalation, she said.
She said 10 bodies had been brought into the hospital. Six men including three doctors and four women are among the dead. Three foreigners affected by the fire are in a stable condition, said Jamali.
Read: Jinnah hospital Karachi issues list of Regent Plaza fire victims
The rescue operation has not ended, and some people are still reportedly trapped inside the hotel.
Most of the country’s buildings don’t meet safety standards to avoid such mishaps.
