At least 67 people are now confirmed dead after the devastating Gul Plaza inferno in Karachi, and the toll may still rise. DNA testing is ongoing, and rescuers continue to sift through debris that remains dangerously hot days after the blaze. With each new recovery, an unavoidable question grows louder: how many similar death traps are operating across Pakistan’s cities, hidden in plain sight until catastrophe strikes?
From congested commercial plazas in Karachi to residential blocks and markets in Islamabad and other urban centres, Pakistan’s cities are littered with buildings that openly flout even the most basic safety standards. Gul Plaza itself was a ground-plus-three-storey structure housing an estimated 1,200 shops. Parts of the building have collapsed, and eyewitness accounts from the scene describe locked exits, sealed access to the roof and scenes of chaos as the fire spread — conditions that turned a blaze into a mass-casualty event.
None of this is unfamiliar. Almost every major urban fire in recent years has revealed the same grim pattern: unauthorised construction, blocked stairwells, non-functional firefighting equipment and occupancy levels far exceeding approved limits. Each tragedy is followed by shock and brief public outrage, then by official assurances — and finally by a return to business as usual. The cycle has become tragically predictable.
The response to the Gul Plaza fire has followed this well-worn script. An inquiry committee has been formed. The Sindh Building Control Authority has announced fire safety assessments and issued notices to hundreds of buildings. These steps are necessary, but they are also long overdue. Karachi alone has witnessed dozens of fatal fires in markets, factories and malls over the past decade, many in buildings that had already been flagged as unsafe. Notices that are not backed by swift inspections, penalties and closures amount to little more than symbolic action.
Meanwhile, families of the missing continue to wait — for confirmation, for remains, and for accountability. They are not asking for sympathy, but for competence and urgency from the state. Their grief lays bare the human cost of regulatory failure and institutional apathy. When enforcement collapses, it is ordinary citizens who pay with their lives.
What Pakistan now requires is a war-footing approach to building safety nationwide. Local and provincial governments must treat unsafe structures as an emergency, not a regulatory inconvenience. This means comprehensive audits, public disclosure of hazardous buildings, immediate evacuations where required and criminal liability for owners and officials who ignore repeated warnings. Fire services must also be properly equipped, adequately staffed and empowered to act without political or commercial interference.
Sixty-seven confirmed deaths should mark a turning point. If they do not, the next fire will once again leave Pakistan counting bodies and asking the same questions — only when it is already too late.
Shafaqna Pakistan
pakistan.shafaqna.com
Note: Shafaqna do not endorse the views expressed in the article
