Golimar buildings’ collapse death toll rises to 20 as three more bodies recovered

Three more bodies were recovered on the third day of operation to clean the rubble of the collapsed buildings in Golimar, bringing the death toll to 20.

The bodies of 24-year-old Tariq Ali, Nayab Ali and details about the identity of the third body had not been received till the filing of this report on Saturday.

There are missing residents of the area and their loved ones feared that they were nearby when a ground plus five-storey residential building, where another floor was being constructed, collapsed and brought down two other neighboring buildings.

One such case is that of 13-year-old Khuzema who was desperately in search of his tai [aunt] for the past three days. He said that his aunt went for grocery on Thursday morning near the collapsed building and never returned since then. He feared that she might be walking past the buildings when they collapsed.

Meanwhile, authorities clearing the rubble have barred the families of the missing people to go near the building. The grieved families lamented that the government is not cooperating with them and they have nowhere to go.

Earlier, Abdullah Ghori cannot remember the exact number of deaths in his extended family in the buildings collapse tragedy on Thursday morning, he counts their names on his fingers. Ghori, who is a wholesaler of eggs, lost nine of his family members on Thursday at around 12pm.

On the day of the incident, the provincial local government minister, Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, said strict action would be taken against people found involved in the tragic incident. He said Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had taken notice of the incident and sought a report from the Karachi commissioner and other relevant officers of the Sindh Building Control Authority.

He said he would personally supervise the investigation into the incident. The minister said this while visiting Golimar where the five-story residential building fell on Thursday. He said the Sindh government was monitoring the treatment of the injured and it had been ensured that they received the best possible medical treatment.

He said strict action would be taken against whosoever responsible, be they officials of the Sindh Building Control Authority or the builders.

He added that he felt extremely sorry that loss of innocent lives could not be prevented. He vowed that the government would try to ensure that in the future no such incident takes place anywhere.