KARACHI: “There it goes again,” the cry rings out. Within seconds, burly firefighters point their hose at the fresh flare up, concentrating a high-pressure stream of water that momentarily douses the leaping flames.

By Sunday afternoon, around 16 hours after the Gul Plaza fire broke out, firefighters are still playing ‘whack-a-mole’ with the blaze.

They had a massive audience, as M.A. Jinnah Road is teeming with people — rescue personnel and fire fighters, volunteers, city officials, media crews and the general public.

“It was full of plastic products. It’ll be burning for days,” I overhear one bystander say.

“I hear they shut the [market] gates at 10pm,” another chimes in.

“There was a parking lot on the third floor, no telling what has become of that,” a third man volunteers.

Many of them are from the neighbourhood, or own businesses nearby. All eyes are on the section of the building that has collapsed, and many an outstretched finger points to a part of the building’s façade, where key beams seem to have lost structural integrity and the whole thing looks like it’s ready to keel over.

A quick glance at Google Street View shows that the collapsed part of the building housed shops and the entrance to the aforementioned parking area. In addition, the corners of the building next door, Rimpa Plaza, are also showing signs of fire damage. This is because there is virtually no gap between the two buildings.

While the crowds gathered at the scene aren’t disrupting the ongoing operation, security personnel do periodically have to ‘urge’ overzealous camera phone-wielding youngsters to back away.

While there, I spot dozens of water tankers from various official and private firms, since getting water in this congested urban locality is a major challenge. As I walk towards the charred building, bystanders note that another tanker has run out.

As they are speaking, a smaller unit approaches the flames, spraying a jet of what appears to be flame-retardant foam. This continues for a minute or so, before their supply is exhausted. A little while later, a snorkel arrives at the scene, and firefighters are able to turn their hoses to the upper stories, which continue to pour out smoke, indicating that some parts of the building are still on fire.

Amid roaring water jets and wailing sirens, an unsettling silence lingers beneath the rubble as people witness the battle between water and fire.

Published in Dawn, January 19th, 2026