Two floors of fire-hit Gul Plaza cleared as death toll rises to 26

Fire brigade and rescue teams have cleared two floors of fire-hit Gul Plaza as the rescue operation continued on Tuesday.

Deputy Commissioner South Javed Nabi Khoso said that the ground floor and first floor of the multi-storey shopping mall have been cleared and checked by rescue teams. He added that efforts are underway to gain access to the second and third floors, where rescue workers are cutting iron grills with the help of cutters to move forward.

According to the deputy commissioner, two more bodies were recovered overnight, bringing the death toll from the fire to 26. He said the number of missing persons initially rose to 81; however, some names were listed twice, and at present, 74 missing persons have been confirmed.

Meanwhile, Police Surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed said that so far 20 bodies have been shifted to the Civil Hospital. Samples have been collected from 14 bodies, out of which seven have been identified. She said the seventh body was identified through a national identity card.

Dr Samia further stated that samples from 48 family members have been collected to help identify the deceased. All samples have been sent to the Sindh Forensic DNA Laboratory, while DNA testing will be carried out at the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi.

She added that some human remains were also recovered from the site, and the identification process is currently underway.