A private fireman who participated in rescuing people from the Gul Plaza shopping centre has held the fire department responsible for not rescuing the people trapped in the building within the response time due to a lack of professional staff and the absence of the necessary equipment.
Recording his statement before the single-member inquiry commission headed by Justice Agha Faisal, Danish Ali said he was returning home when he noticed thick clouds of smoke. He said he reached the Gul Plaza at around 10:20pm and saw that the fire was spreading rapidly.
He also said he saw people trapped on the third floor screaming for help. “I asked the fire officials present on the spot to give me two ladders so that I could rescue them.” After he was provided with two ladders, he rescued four people stranded on the second floor with the help of Edhi volunteers. He said he continued rescuing people to the best of his training and professional knowledge.
The witness said that a window grille on the third floor was locked, so he broke it with a hammer provided by the fire officials, and rescued four people on the building’s roof. He said he noticed that the firefighters were not working actively, and most of them were not professionally trained. According to the protocol, the very first vehicle to reach the site must be loaded with proper equipment, including gas masks, he added.
However, he pointed out, he noticed that the fire engines did not have sufficient equipment, including smoke ejectors. He said he rescued 11 people: seven from the third floor and four from the roof toward the way of the Rimpa Plaza by 4am.
He said shopkeepers were helping each other. The smoke was poisonous, he added. He remarked that an effective rescue strategy could have saved the lives of the people trapped in the building.
A survivor named Abdullah also recorded his statement, saying that he was on the mezzanine floor when the fire had broken out. He said he and five other people managed to get out through the hole where an air conditioner’s outdoor unit was fixed in the window, then they were rescued by people through a private truck.
He also said he fell unconscious and was treated at the Trauma Centre. Survivors Mohammad Junaid, Mohammad Ayan, Fahad and Ali Haider did not show up. The commission also issued notices to the Civil Defence additional controller to appear before the commission for recording his statement on February 26, as Abdul Hameed is no more holding the charge of Civil Defence director.
