QUETTA: Six members of a family were killed in a gas explosion in Quetta’s Satellite Town area, police said on Sunday.

The father and his five children died at their home in the Muslim Etihad Colony in the wee hours of Sunday. The blast occurred when Sharfuddin, 50, tried to ignite a heater that was connected to a leaking cylinder, police said.

A portion of the house collapsed as a result, killing the man and his children, aged between 4 and 14.

The blast also damaged another house and smashed the windowpanes of many other nearby homes.

Relatives of the victims transferred the bodies to Quetta Civil Hospital, said Dr Waseem Baig, a spokesman for the hospital, according to the Associated Press.

The children were identified as Zeatullah, 4; Ayesha, 6; Haibatullah, 7; Afia, 12; and Aiba, 14.

Temperatures in Quetta can drop to as low as minus 7 degrees Celsius at night, with most households relying on gas cylinders for warmth because they lack access to a main supply.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2023