• Civil Defence official testifies power shutdown, closed exits and lack of emergency lighting hampered evacuation
• Says building was inspected twice in 2024, 2025 and fire safety mesasures were found inadequate
KARACHI: An official of Civil Defence has informed the Gul Plaza Judicial Commission that the fire and rescue service of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), as well as the Rescue 1122, were equipped with advanced machinery, but failed to douse the fire efficiently and rescue people trapped inside the burning building on Jan 17.
He also deposed that premature shutdown of electricity, lack of emergency/backup lights and closure of gates had further exacerbated panic among people stuck in the ill-fated building and significantly impaired evacuation efforts.
Mirza Mursaleen Baig, a technical instructor at the Civil Defence department, further testified that fire safety measures were found inadequate during an inspection of the building, but a challan could not be filed in court over non-compliance with safety regulations.
While mainly shifting responsibility of the tragic incident to the fire crew and rescue services, he maintained that Civil Defence was facing a severe shortage of staff and resources, and it was impossible to inspect all the buildings comprehensively.
Earlier, the single-member commission headed by Justice Agha Faisal of the Sindh High Court had directed additional controller Civil Defence Fatima Memon to respond to its various questions after outgoing director Abdul Hameed informed it that he could not reply to the questionnaires as he was no longer holding the charge.
However, Mr Baig turned up before the commission, tasked with probing the devastating blaze, and informed it that he was assisting Ms Memon, who has been placed under suspension after the Gul Plaza fire incident.
In his testimony recorded under oath, the technical instructor said that inspection and fire prevention in commercial and industrial sectors and holding training sessions for firefighting/casualty were core responsibilities of Civil Defence.
He deposed that inspections of the ill-fated building were carried out in 2024 and 2025, and that fire safety measures were found inadequate, while the building management was directed to comply with safety regulations.
He also said that generally, Civil Defence used to file challans before the special courts in case of non-compliance, but the same could not be filed in this particular case due to the unavailability of courts/judge. The official conceded that the courts had become functional in July last year; however, the challan was not placed before it till the devastating fire incident took place.
Based on available information, Mr Baig further testified that it was a class “B” fire involving multiple types of highly flammable material/fuel, including plastic, rubber, melamine crockery, fabrics, cosmetic products, etc.
As per standard fire safety principles, the electricity is ordinarily shut down where the fire originates from an electrical short circuit, categorising the same as class “C” fire, whereas immediate disconnection of power in class “B” fire was not necessarily mandated unless there is a direct electrical hazard, he maintained.
He also deposed that the premature shutdown of power had contributed to darkness in the premises and panic among the people present inside the building at the time of the incident.
The official of Civil Defence further testified that the exit points should have remained open to facilitate the evacuation, as closure of gates, darkness and smoke have significantly impaired evacuation efforts.
Under the applicable fire safety laws and standard operating procedures (SOPs), the technical instructor was of the view that the building management was required to maintain firefighting capacity sufficient for around 15 minutes before the arrival of emergency services.
He also said that no separate emergency lighting arrangements were installed at the passages/corridors, which were normally required to function in the event of a power shutdown during a fire emergency.
The absence of such emergency lights had further exacerbated panic among occupants, particularly in darkness combined with thick smoke, he said, and further asserted that Civil Defence was facing a severe shortage of staff and resources as there were only 88 personnel for the whole province.
He maintained that only six persons were assigned to the South district with no supporting staff, and under such constraints, it was humanly impossible to inspect all buildings comprehensively.
About the Gul Plaza fire, the technical instructor of Civil Defence said, “I state that the primary responsibility lies with the KMC fire and rescue services and the Rescue 1122 department. They are equipped with advanced machinery such as special oxygen masks with tanks, tools and specialised SOPs to handle such emergencies.
Unfortunately, due to a lack of awareness or negligence, they failed to extinguish the fire effectively and rescue the trapped individuals”.
Thereafter, the commission invited the director general of Rescue 1122 and the chief fire officer to cross-examine the technical instructor of Civil Defence, as he had levelled accusations of serious nature.
Published in Dawn, March 1st, 2026
