Pakistan: Faisalabad Glue Factory Explosion Leaves 20 Dead | World News
At least 20 people, including seven members of a single family, were killed and seven others injured following a massive ferry explosion apparently caused by gas leak at a glue factory in Faisalabad on Friday morning, according to Dawn. The explosion at the Crystal Chemical Factory also destroyed four nearby industrial units and nine houses in the Malikpur area.
Rescue teams and police took the dead and injured, including three people in critical condition, to the burn unit of Allied Hospital. Authorities told Dawn the victims’ ages ranged from one to 62 years old.
While the crime scene team and forensic experts examined the area, factory owner Qaiser Chughtai and administrative staff allegedly hid for several hours.
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Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif expressed grief over the deaths, expressed condolences to the affected families and sought a detailed report from Commissioner Raja Jahangir Anwar. The commissioner later constituted a five-member committee to determine responsibility for the fatal incident.
Labor bodies also criticized the authorities. In separate statements reported by Dawn, National Trade Union Federation General Secretary Nasir Mansur, Workers’ Party Qaumi Movement Chairman Baba Latif Ansari and Haqooq i Khalq Party Chief Farooq Tariq blamed official negligence for the heavy loss of life.
They said the government’s failure to enforce safety measures allowed factory owners to operate in conditions that endangered workers and residents.
The police later arrested the factory owner and registered a case under several sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act, Pakistan Penal Code and Explosives Act. According to the police, the FIR included the names of Qaiser Chughtai, Bilal Ali Imran and six others.
Manager Bilal Ali Imran, cook Khalid and workers Zain and Atta Muhammad were also detained.
The FIR stated that residents had repeatedly warned the management against storing hazardous flammable chemicals in the premises, but the warnings were ignored.
The explosion caused the roofs of four factories, including the glue unit, and nine houses in neighboring Shahab Town to collapse under the force of the explosion, Dawn reported.
Police confirmed that 20 people died and seven were injured in the tragedy.
Among the victims were seven members of the same family: Shafiq (62), his wife Maqsooda (55), their son Irfan and grandchildren Mukaddas (13), Rehan (12), Muhammad Ahmed (10) and Azan (4).
Electrical engineer Ashiq Hussain and his three sons Obaid (24), Omar (22) and Bilal (20) died when their house collapsed.
Four members of another family, 40-year-old Fakhra, his one-year-old son Ali Hasnain and daughters Maham (4) and Cennet (3) also died under the rubble.
Among the victims were two brothers, Waqas (25) and Saim (23), who worked in a nearby embroidery factory. According to Dawn, factory worker Fazal also died.
