KARACHI: The death toll from Karachi’s Gul Plaza fire stood at 71, and 77 were still missing as rescue teams recovered additional human remains during ongoing search operation while the clean-up was near completion.
Deputy Commissioner South Javed Nabi Khoso on Saturday said that Gul Plaza has been 90 percent cleared, adding that the search operation is expected to be completed tonight.
He said that with the help of snorkels, rescue teams re-entered the upper floors of the fire-hit plaza. However, the search operation has not yet begun in the most sensitive part of the building.
According to Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed, 16 bodies have been identified so far. She said that due to severe burning of the bodies, the DNA identification process has become very complicated.
A spokesman of Rescue 1122 said that rescue personnel found Rs1,00,000 during a search operation, which was later handed over to its owner, setting an example of honesty.
On the other hand, the process of releasing compensation funds for the families of the deceased has been initiated, and the details of the families of eight victims have been completed.
The Deputy Commissioner South has forwarded the compensation cases to the Sindh government. The Sindh government has already announced compensation of Rs 10 million (one crore rupees) for each deceased person’s family.
