Trapped on the mezzanine: why did so many die in Karachi's Gul Plaza fire?

The fire started at about 10:15 p.m. on Saturday 17 January 2026, in an artificial flower shop on the ground floor of Gul Plaza, a sprawling shopping complex in Karachi. Rescue 1122, the state emergency service, arrived at 10:53 p.m. — nearly 40 minutes later, according to The News, citing a leaked inquiry report.

By then the blaze was racing through air-conditioning ducts. It took nearly two days to put out, and left more than 1,100 shops in ruins, Dawn reported.

Reuters called it the port city's largest fire in more than a decade. The questions it leaves are about the building, the doors and the response — and about how many people actually died.

How many people died?

The toll climbed for days. On 21 January Reuters reported "around 50" deaths and 84 people registered as missing with a state-run rescue service, adding that police feared most of them were dead, in a report carried by Internazionale.

On 25 January police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed confirmed 73 deaths, Dawn reported. Only 23 victims had been identified — 16 by DNA, six by facial identification and one by national identity card.

Days later, The News and Daily Times reported that the final inquiry report put the toll at 79, most of them on the mezzanine floor, where people were trapped by heavy smoke and extreme heat. That report had not been officially released.

Reuters also noted it was Karachi's deadliest fire since a 2012 industrial fire that killed more than 260 people.

How did the fire start and spread?

According to the leaked findings reported by The News, the fire began in the ground-floor artificial flower shop, allegedly triggered by children at the shop. It spread through air-conditioning ducts, helped by combustible material and structural weaknesses. Daily Times also reports that investigators found the ducts contributed to the spread.

The complex was known for about 1,200 family-owned stores selling wedding clothes, toys, crockery and other goods, Reuters reported. One shopkeeper, Rehmat Khan, told Reuters that about 18 to 20 people had been in his shop, including six staff, and that all were missing. He called it "a doomsday scenario".

Were the doors locked?

The building's entrances were reportedly locked, The News wrote, questioning why the main entrance was not forced open and why windows were not broken to reach people inside.

Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori raised the same point, according to Dawn: he asked why Gul Plaza's closed doors had not been broken down when machinery exists to demolish buildings. He said he was not claiming anyone started the fire deliberately, only that responsibility should be fixed, and called for a judicial commission.

What did the response look like?

The leaked timeline, as reported by both The News and Daily Times: fire at 10:15 p.m.; fire brigade alerted at 10:26; the deputy commissioner on site at 10:30; first fire engine at 10:37; Rescue 1122 at 10:53.

The report reportedly holds the fire brigade and Rescue 1122 partly responsible for arriving late and failing to take crucial measures. But The News says it does not fix responsibility on individuals or departments, and that its leaked points rest on statements and assessments rather than forensic evidence.

A police case dated 23 January described the fire as an "outcome of negligence and carelessness" and was registered against unknown persons, Dawn reported. The Sindh cabinet approved compensation of one crore rupees for each victim's family, according to Daily Times.

What we do not know

• The final toll. Officially confirmed: 73 (as of 25 January). Reported from the unreleased inquiry: 79. Many victims could only be identified by DNA.
• The cause. The flower-shop origin and the role of children are "alleged" in leaked findings; no forensic report is public in our sources.
• Who locked the doors, and why. The sources say the entrances were "reportedly" locked; none says by whom.
• Whether the inquiry will be published. A committee led by the Karachi commissioner prepared it for the Sindh chief minister. A PPP leader, Ali Khursheedi, called for a judicial inquiry instead, questioning how the commissioner could investigate a tragedy under his own administration.

What to watch next

Rebuilding Gul Plaza may take at least two years, Daily Times reported. Before then, Karachi will have to answer the governor's question — why closed doors stayed closed — and decide whether a report built on statements is enough to change how a city of crowded markets is inspected.

Sources

• Dawn: Death toll from Karachi's Gul Plaza fire rises to 73; 23 identified so far (25 January 2026)
• Internazionale, carrying Reuters: Death toll in Karachi mall fire climbs to around 50, official says (21 January 2026)
• The News: Gul Plaza blaze took 79 lives, mostly on mezzanine floor: report (29 January 2026)
• Daily Times: Investigation confirms 79 deaths in Gul Plaza fire (28 January 2026)