ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has 447 confirmed cases of coronavirus, reveal the official data on a newly launched government website, while five people have recovered from the infection that has claimed three lives in the country.
The government on Thursday launched a website to provide authentic information to people regarding the confirmed number of coronavirus cases in the country.
The portal – www.covid.gov.pk – gives area-wise statistics of infections and also specify the number of new cases and virus-related deaths within a span of the last 24 hours.
It may be recalled that Prime Minister Imran Khan warned the nation in a televised speech on Tuesday that coronavirus was going to spread further, adding that even developed countries with greater financial resources and better medical facilities where struggling to deal with the pandemic.
Khan also emphasized the importance of social distancing and good hygiene practices to prevent the possibility of contracting the virus. While such precautionary measures have also been highlighted by experts and public figures, there are still plenty of rumors and misinformation about the outbreak in the country.
By setting up the website with recent and reliable information, the government is trying to address that problem, hoping that this information will also trickle down to those with little or no access to the Internet.
Official statistics reveal Pakistan has nearly 450 confirmed coronavirus cases
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Official statistics reveal Pakistan has nearly 450 confirmed coronavirus cases
- The government is relying on Internet to supply authentic information on the global pandemic that has engulfed the country
- The official portal about the outbreak has been launched at a time when there is plenty of misinformation about the virus
Death toll in Pakistan shopping plaza fire rises to 67, officials say
- Rescue teams still searching for damaged Gul Plaza in Karachi where blaze erupted on Saturday, says police surgeon
- Karachi has a long history of deadly fires, often linked to poor safety standards, weak regulatory enforcement
KARACHI: The death toll from a devastating fire at a shopping plaza in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi jumped to 67 on Thursday after police and a hospital official confirmed that the remains of dozens more people had been found.
Police surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed said rescue teams were still searching the severely damaged Gul Plaza in the Karachi, where the blaze erupted on Saturday.
Most remains were discovered in fragments, making identification extremely difficult, but the deaths of 67 people have been confirmed, she said. Asad Raza, a senior police official in Karachi, also confirmed the death toll. Authorities previously had confirmed 34 deaths.
Family members of the missing have stayed near the destroyed plaza and hospital, even after providing their DNA for testing. Some have tried to enter the building forcibly, criticizing the rescue efforts as too slow.
“They are not conducting the search properly,” said Khair-un-Nisa, pointing toward the rescuers. She stood outside the building in tears, explaining that a relative who had left to go shopping has been missing since the blaze.
Another woman, Saadia Saeed, said her brother has been trapped inside the building since Saturday night, and she does not know what has happened to him.
“I am ready to go inside the plaza to look for him, but police are not allowing me,” she said.
There was no immediate comment from authorities about accusations they have been too slow.
Many relatives of the missing claim more lives could have been saved if the government had acted more swiftly. Authorities have deployed police around the plaza to prevent relatives from entering the unstable structure, while rescuers continue their careful search.
Investigators say the blaze erupted at a time when most shop owners were either closing for the day or had already left. Since then, the Sindh provincial government has said around 70 people were missing after the flames spread rapidly, fueled by goods such as cosmetics, clothing, and plastic items.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, though police have indicated that a short circuit may have triggered the blaze.
Karachi has a long history of deadly fires, often linked to poor safety standards, weak regulatory enforcement, and illegal construction.
In November 2023, a shopping mall fire killed 10 people and injured 22. One of Pakistan’s deadliest industrial disasters occurred in 2012, when a garment factory fire killed at least 260 people.
