Fire destroys 10 shops in Saddar mobile phone market

Ten shops in the Saddar mobile phone market in Karachi were destroyed when a fire broke out due to a short circuit in the wee hours of Tuesday, the city’s fire department spokesperson said.

The fire started in a shop in the Shah Jahan Mobile Market and spread to the first and second floors of the building, engulfing several other shops.

According to the spokesperson, firemen had to break locks and shutters of the shops to extinguish the flames, which were intense. The fire was brought under control after hectic efforts spanning over five hours. The market has over 800 shops on the ground floor. He said that the blaze destroyed at least 10 shops and affected around 100 others. He added that 10 fire tenders participated in the efforts to extinguish the fire.

He said that the initial findings suggested that the fire was caused by a short circuit. The firefighters faced a shortage of water during the operation to douse the flames. Further investigations are underway.

Shopkeepers mugged

In an unfortunate incident, two shopkeepers of the Saddar mobile phone market were mugged while they shifting their shops’ items to their homes.

The traders said they had packed mobile phones and accessories in cartons immediately after the fire had started and were taking them homes in the Garden area when armed suspects snatched the valuables from them near their residences. Meanwhile, Rizwan Irfan, president of the Electronics Dealers Association, said in a statement that the suspects should be arrested and the looted goods recovered.