• Three-storey building spread over 2,000 square yards collapsed before fire could be brought under control
• Two firefighters injured while trying to extinguish fire
• Several hundred workers rescued, three adjacent factories evacuated

KARACHI: A huge fire caused the collapse of a sprawling three-storey garment factory and prompted the rescuers to evacuate three adjacent factories at the Karachi Export Processing Zone (EPZ) within the Landhi industrial area on Thursday. Two firemen were injured when the front portion of the factory caved in during the initial phase of the firefighting operation, according to police and rescue services officials.

The blaze that erupted in the afternoon kept raging fiercely until the entire three-storey structure, weakened by the flames and intense heat, collapsed a few hours after sunset.

Sukhan police said that they and firefighters rushed to the site upon receiving information about the big fire.

Rescue-1122 spokesperson Hassaan Ul Haseeb Khan told Dawn that their command and control system received the information at around 2pm. He said EPZ’s own fire tenders and those of the Rescue-1122 along with KMC’s fire brigade struggled hard to prevent the fire from spreading fast but all floors of the building were packed with clothes, the combustible material, which frustrated the efforts.

“The fire spread rapidly and engulfed the entire building. The flames and intense heat first caused collapse of the front portion of the building. KMC’s two firemen at work there suffered burns and other injuries. They were provided first aid by the Rescue-1122 medical team and then taken to the Burns Centre of the city’s Civil Hospital for further treatment,” he said.

Mr Khan said that as many as 16 fire tenders of the EPZ, Rescue-1122 and KMC fire brigade were employed to put out the blaze.

It was realised in the middle of the firefighting operation that the building might collapse considering intensity of the fire and heat that had weakened the entire structure, he added.

In reply to a question, he said the factor had around 2,000 workers in different shifts and several hundred of them on duty in the afternoon were safely evacuated.

Mr Khan said it was too early to ascertain the cause of this fire but generally such incidents were attributed to electrical short circuit. Only a proper investigation would help establish the cause, he added.

The Rescue-1122 spokesperson share the information about the complete collapse of the enormous building late in the evening. He said that no loss of human life occurred in the fire or collapse of the structure.

Meanwhile, Chief Fire Officer of the KMC’s Fire Brigade Humayun Khan told media at the collapsed factory that it was an extremely difficult task to control the fire, stockpiles of combustible material being the main factor.

He said total a dozen KMC fire tenders were among the 20 employed to put out the fire. To a query, he said he did not know whether the factory had the fire safety or firefighting equipment in place.

Eyewitnesses said that clouds of thick smoke emanating from the factory engulfed the nearby localities causing breathing problem to residents and visitors.

The situation inside the factory was even worse which also complicated the firefighting operation, the KMC CFO said, adding that all those present in the adjacent factories and dwellings were also advised to move away from the fire-hit structure.

It was the sixth incident of fire within the Landhi EPZ this year, according to Hassan Ul Haseeb Khan. In June 2025, three factories were gutted. Five firefighters had sustained injuries when one of these buildings had collapsed.

Earlier in July 2020, three factories were destroyed by similarly massive fires.

Published in Dawn, December 5th, 2025