Four die, 20 injured in factory roof collapse

LAHORE
Four people lost their lives while 20 others sustained injuries when the roof of a garments factory caved in near Rohi Nullah in Nishtar Colony police limits on Friday.
Rescue 1122, Edhi, police and laborers of nearby factories reached the place and started a rescue operation. The injured persons were shifted to a local hospital. The dead were identified as Muhammad Ali, 30, son of Rasheed, Boota, 21, son of Shabbir, Tariq, 30, son of Khadim Hussain and Shahzad, 27. The injured persons included Imran Akbar, Kashif, Muhammad Imran, Jamil, Faryad, Arshad, Bashir, Irfan, Zahid, Abid, Hanif, Raheel, Tanveer, Sabir and Mohsin. The two-storey building of the factory was built with concrete while the hall, where the incident happened, was covered with a makeshift roof made of mud at 3rd floor. It was used for scraping purposes. The walls of the hall were also not cemented.
Bashir, a worker of Jeans Company (Pvt) Ltd, where the incident occurred, said that he had just returned after offering Juma prayer, when he heard a loud sound followed by screams from the upper portion of the factory. As he reached there he saw people and clothes of the victims buried under the rubble. He said there was mud deep up to an arm’s length at the victims. He dug the mud to take out the victims. He said that the heads of some victims were meshed with girders of the roof. Another worker, Arsalan, said that the incident had happened during the lunch break and most of the workers were taking nap after having meal. He said that some workers had gone out of the hall due to the break otherwise causalities might have been multiplied.
Most of the workers alleged that the roof of the hall was dilapidated and it used to seep during rains. They had requested the administration to repair the roof but would put more mud on it which multiplied the weight. SHO Nistar Colony Asif Zulfiqar said that they had taken four persons of the administration of the factory including Chief Security Officer, Maj. (r) Muhammad Iqbal into custody while the owner of the factory, Rana Aqeel, lived abroad. He said they were further investigating the matter. No FIR was registered till the filing of this report.
Body found: A 40-year-old unidentified man was found dead in the North Cantt police limits on Friday. Police have removed the body to morgue for autopsy. A passerby informed the police about a man lying unconscious. Police reached at the incident place on information. They shifted the victim to a nearby hospital where the doctors pronounced him as brought dead. Police said that the victim looked like a drug-addict and might have died due to excessive use of drugs. However, autopsy would help ascertain the cause of his death. Police were searching for the family of the deceased person.
Robber killed: A robber was killed while a constable sustained injuries during an alleged encounter in North Cantt police limits. Police have removed the body of the deceased to morgue for autopsy and registered an FIR. Police received a call that two motorcyclists were fleeing after looting citizens in the Mustafabad police limits. As robbers were passing from main Hurbanspura Road, Muhafiz of Ghaziabad police tried to stop them. They exchanged firing. As a result, a robber died on the spot, his accomplice fled from the scene and a constable Irfan-ul-Haq received an injury in his leg. Heavy contingents of police reached at the incident place on information of police encounter and started search operation for the fleeing robber. Police also collected forensic evidences from the crime scene.
Dies: A 28-year-old man died in a road accident in the Shahdara police limits on Friday. Police have removed the body to morgue for autopsy and registered a case against unknown accused driver. The deceased person was identified as Sajjad Ahmad, a resident of Gujranwala. He had come to see his in-laws.