KARACHI: A massive fire that broke out at a plastic factory in Landhi’s Export Processing Zone (EPZ) on Friday night and later spread to a nearby factory was brought under control in 13 hours but could not be put out till Saturday evening, officials said.

Rescue-1122 spokesperson Hassaan-ul-Haseeb Khan told Dawn that 20 fire tenders from Rescue-1122, the KMC Fire Brigade and the Pakistan Navy, along with snorkels, managed to control the fire by around 10am on Saturday.

However, the cooling operation remained underway till late in the night.

In a statement issued in late evening, Karachi Commissioner Hasan Naqvi said that all agencies were working hard to put out the fire and there was not shortage of water. He added that no casualties were reported as workers had already left the premises.

The blaze erupted at the Modern Factory at around 9:10pm. Initially, a few fire tenders were deployed but additional tenders and snorkels from across the city were called in after the scale of the fire became apparent.

He said the fire started on the factory’s ground floor where plastic material was stored while fibre material, which is highly combustible, was kept on the first floor. The factory covered an area of 3,000 to 4,000 square yards and comprised a ground-plus-one structure.

The fire spread rapidly and engulfed an adjacent factory, S-1 Global Trading, which reconditioned leftover shoes. That factory covered about 2,000 square yards and had a ground-plus-three-storey structure.

Mr Khan said employees’ shifts had ended at 6pm and only a few security guards and essential administrative staff were present at the time of the incident. They were rescued immediately.

He said nearly 70 per cent of the goods in both factories were destroyed, while about 30pc were salvaged. Firefighters initially faced difficulties due to a reported protest in Malir following a suicide bombing at an imambargah in Islamabad. However, city administration and police authorities responded promptly. He added that coordination among the concerned institutions was better this time.

According to him, at least 15 major fire incidents have occurred in the EPZ over the past year.

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2026