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Slum blaze in Pakistan kills 30 Slum blaze in Pakistan kills 40
(about 5 hours later)
At least 30 people were killed when fire engulfed homes in a shanty town in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, local officials say. At least 40 people have been killed in a fire that engulfed homes in a shanty town in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, local officials say.
The blaze happened late on Thursday in a northern suburb of the city. The blaze happened early on Friday in a northern suburb of the city.
Many of those killed were asleep at the time of the fire and struggled to get out, Pakistan's APP news agency says. At least 20 others were injured. Many of those killed were asleep at the time of the fire and struggled to get out. At least 20 others were injured.
The fire broke out after a power line fell on to the roof of a hut, local media reports say. The cause of the fire has yet to be determined but may have been due either to a fallen power line or a fire lit for the cold night.
It spread quickly, ripping through more than 30 homes. Thick black smoke could be seen rising from the scene, witnesses say. Hemmed in
Firefighters say the only exit from the shanty town - surrounded on three sides by larger buildings - appears to have been blocked by the flames. The BBC's Charles Haviland in Islamabad says distraught survivors have been desperately searching the burnt-out site for family members.
"Most of the casualties seem to have been caused by the lack of exit route," the AFP news agency quoted fire brigade official Ehtesham Salaam as saying. Reports from the scene say those killed include a mother and father and their seven children, all aged under 12.
Most of the dead were women and children, local officials said. The wounded are being treated at city hospitals, one of which has declared an emergency.
Several of the wounded were in a serious condition, an official at Karachi's Abbasi Shaheed Hospital said. More than half of the victims were children, along with many women.
Many more people are seriously wounded with burns and there are fears the death toll may rise.
Local officials said one reason for the high number of casualties was that the slum dwellings were hemmed in on three sides by tall buildings.
Some reports said the fire spread having been lit to warm up people outdoors on a chilly night but the provincial health minister said it might have been due to a power line falling on to the huts.
The port of Karachi is one of the world's biggest cities, with vast numbers living in similar makeshift settlements.
This appears to be one of Pakistan's deadliest fires for several years.
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