PESHAWAR: On Monday at four in the morning, a large fire broke out in a retail center in the Saddar neighborhood of Peshawar. After thirteen hours of nonstop work, the fire was contained, according to a rescue spokesperson quoted by Geo News.
To contain the fire, some 36 vehicles—including water tanks and 130 firefighters—are stationed at the mall. It would take some time, according to the rescue officials, to put out the fire.
There are roughly 200 stores in the two-story Time Centre Plaza, including ones that sell electronics, cell phones, and UPS.
Millions of rupees were lost, the rescue crew said, as the fire consumed the entire building. In addition, the residences next to the mall were evacuated.
Nevertheless, there have been no reported fatalities.
Teams from other districts, including Khyber, Nowshera, Mardan, and Charsadda, were summoned to the scene of the event to assist with the rescue efforts, the rescue officials continued.
The operation was supervised by Lieutenant General Hasan Azhar Hayat, the Corps Commander of Peshawar. Hundreds of stores were damaged by the fire, according to the rescue squad.
The emergency call was received at 12:45 a.m. last night, the rescue spokeswoman said, adding that the locals said the fire was caused by a short circuit.
The spokesperson stated, “Four shopkeepers who had entered the market were rescued during the fire,” and noted that the health of some of the rescue authorities hurt during the operation was in “critical” condition.
