Three workers killed in fire at Baldia Town factory

Three labourers lost their lives after a fire erupted in a thread factory in Baldia Town on the night between Tuesday and Wednesday. A firefighter was also injured in the incident.

The fire erupted on the ground-plus-three-storey thread factory, Al-Makka Fibers, located in Madina Colony Sector 5 in Baldia Town. Upon receiving the information, fire tenders were despatched to the site to extinguish the blaze but according to some witnesses, they took a long time to arrive.

According to firefighters and witnesses, the fire erupted on the third floor of the factory and quickly engulfed the rest of the building. As many as 22 workers were present at the factory as the night shift when the fire broke out.

The witnesses and residents of the area claimed that as fire tenders did not reach there in time, they themselves attempted to put out the blaze and were able to evacuate 19 employees safely from the burning factory.

Volunteers of different welfare organisations and a heavy contingent of law enforcers also reached the fire site. Later, firefighters arrived and started to extinguish the flames. It took around five hours for them to douse the blaze. A total of four fire tenders and a snorkel were used in the operation.

The firefighters retrieved the body of one of the three labourers from the first floor of the building. He was identified as Sher Ali. The bodies of the other two labourers were retrieved from the third floor of the factory. They were identified as 21-year-old Kazim, son of Ghulam Akbar, and 20-year-old Fayyaz.

The ill-fated father of one of the deceased persons, Ali, who had reached the factory after receiving the fire news from the television, told the media persons that his son had managed to come out of the factory but after hearing the screams of the employees trapped on the third floor of the building, he went inside the factory again in a bid to rescue the trapped workers but he lost his life there.

Provincial minister Sohail Anwar Siyal also reached the site after receiving complaints about the delay in the arrival of fire tenders and improper arrangements of the fire safety by the company management.

He said an inquiry would be conducted into the fire incident and strict action would be taken against those who were guilty of criminal negligence. He told the media that the fire was apparently caused by a short circuit. Later, the factory management and the fire brigade termed each other responsible for the three deaths in the fire. The factory management claimed that the fire brigade did not send its teams to the factory in time.

The fire brigade, however, blamed the factory management for the deaths, stating that there were no fire exits in the factory. Fire Brigade Chief Fire Officer Mobin Ahmed refuted the claims of fire extinguishing vehicles arriving late at the site. He said four fire tenders and a snorkel were rushed to the factory immediately and it took five hours for the firefighting teams to douse the fire.

He added that there was no emergency exit in the factory and the windows were closed with iron bars. He maintained that the fire security measures were not in place. “There was no emergency gate in the factory’s multi-storey building, whereas, only one route was present for entrance and exit purposes,” he said.

Ahmed stated that one firefighter also sustained minor head injuries while extinguishing the blaze. He was taken to a hospital from where he was discharged after receiving medical first aid.

Contrary to the chief fire officer’s version, the factory owner said the fire brigade arrived two hours late despite being timely informed and the delay caused the loss of life and property. He added that all the fire security measures were placed in the factory.

The families of two of the deceased workers, Fayyaz and Kazim, took their bodies without medico-legal formalities to their hometown, Rajanpur, for last rites. They also refused to lodge any complaint against the factory owner or the management.

However, the father of Ali claimed that there were no emergency exits at the factory. “My son came out of the factory during the fire, but went back in to help evacuate others and died,” he said.

Ali’s grandfather also spoke to the media and said his grandson lost his life due to the negligence of the factory management. He called on the provincial government to conduct surveys and inspections of the factories to prevent such tragic incidents.

“There was no firefighting equipment in the factory and the fire tenders also arrived late,” the grandfather lamented. Meanwhile, police said they had initiated investigations and a case would be registered against the factory owner and the management if they were found guilty or if families of the deceased employees approached police.