Fire at Shah Alam Market

At least five men were injured and valuables worth billions of rupees were reduced to ashes when a fire broke out at Al-Faazil Centre in Shah Alam Market after Friday prayers on Friday.
The fire erupted at about 2:20 pm on Friday on the third floor of the six-storey Al-Faazil Centre located at the back of two high-rise plazas in the Shah Alam Market. Flames followed by a minor blast created panic among the traders in no time.
Rescue 1122 and fire fighting agencies reached the scene after 15 minutes. It took around four hours for the fire fighters to put out the fire but smoke was till coming out.
According to Edhi officials, five laborers: Imran, Safdar, Rizwan, Adnan and a watchman, Abdullah Khan, sustained minor burn injuries The injured were rushed to hospital where their condition is said to be stable.
The fire burnt Al-Faazil Plaza, destroyed 70 percent of the neighboring Data Plaza and partially damaged another neighboring China Plaza. The fire gutted 12 shops and four go-downs, while partially damaging dozens of shops and go-downs in neighboring plazas. Police cordoned off the area after the fire which resulted in traffic jams on the roads in Shah Alam Market. Traffic wardens diverted the traffic on adjacent roads.
A shop owner at Al-Faazil Plaza, Waleed Shah, said the fire erupted on the plaza’s third floor at about 2:15 pm and engulfed three to four plazas in no time. He claimed that WAPDA officials disconnected the electricity supply at 12:30 pm which was restored by WAPDA officials at 1:30 pm. He said that electricity supply was fluctuating, which caused a short circuit that sparked a big fire. He said that normally WAPDA disconnected the electricity supply at 2:00 pm and restored at 4:00 pm. He said Al-Faazil plaza was constructed by Chaudhry Irfan about 12 years ago. He said that a trader, Amir Qureshi, had rented upper five floors of the plaza, where he stored cosmetics, toys, perfumes and soaps. He said that Qureshi had a wholesale business and he purchased the aforesaid items from Dubai, China, Quetta and Peshawar.
An eyewitness and shop owner, Khurramm, whose five shops of imported soaps were burnt, said that he was sitting in his shop on the plaza’s ground floor when he heard a blast, which was followed by fire. He said that fire was so intense that they could not shift their valuables from their shops. He said that fire has caused him a loss of billions of rupees. He said they have not estimated the loss yet and could tell exact detail after fire fighters extinguish fire. Another shop owner, Abdul Samad, said the fire burnt 12 shops and partially damaged dozens of shops. He said that fire gutted shops mainly owned by Khurram, Muhammad Asif, Hassan Abid, Goshi, Mirza, Tanveer and Umer Traders.
Rescue 1122 District Emergency Officer Dr Ahmed said that they had controlled about 80 percent of fire by 6 pm and it would take another three to four hours to extinguish fire completely. He said it appeared that the fire erupted owing to short-circuiting but they could not confirm the reason until they conducted a detailed investigation, which was possible after the fire extinguished. He said that they could not estimate the loss at this stage as well, however valuables worth billions of rupees had been lost.
A fire fighter said that the plaza had many flammable items, owing to which minor blasts were witnessed after intervals during fire fighting. He said that the plazas did not have easy access points, owing to which fire fighting was not easy for them. He said that a hydrant point in front of the Japan Centre helped them put out the fire.
Anjuman-e-Tajraan (Khidmat Group) general secretary, while talking to the media, held WAPDA responsible for the incident. He said that electricity wiring was not properly managed by the LESCO officials in Shah Alam Market, owing to which short-circuiting took place and caused billions of rupees loss to traders. Japan Centre in Shah Alam Market consists of Al-Faazil Plaza, Ali Plaza, China Centre and Data Plaza. A salesman, Syed Zulifqar, said that each plaza consisted of seven to eight shops at the ground floor.
He said that each shop’s size was approximately eight by 10 feet while few shops were of 10 by 20 feet. He said that about 70 to 80 shops were located in different plazas in Japan Centre, which was in the middle of Daana and Baara markets.