ISLAMABAD: A devastating gas explosion inside a glue-making chemical factory has killed 15 people — including children and women — in Pakistan’s industrial city of Faisalabad, triggering a fire that swept through adjoining homes and exposed long-running safety failures in densely populated neighbourhoods.
Rescue officials said the blast tore through the Malikpur–Shahab Town area with such force that at least 10 surrounding houses were damaged. Roofs collapsed, windows shattered, and debris filled the narrow residential lanes built around the aging factory over the decades.
The rescue service attributed the explosion to a gas leak, which was also confirmed in the statement issued by the Faisalabad Commissioner’s office.
The statement by the commissioner’s office said four factories were operating in the Malikpur area. “A fire erupted in one of the factories due to gas leakage and engulfed the other factories as well.”
The statement by the commissioner’s office said that 15 bodies had been pulled out from the rubble, while 10 of the injured people were taken to a local Hospital, and three were discharged after first aid.
Witnesses described scenes of panic as the shockwave hit the community, causing families to scramble for safety. Several people were injured as fire crews battled the blaze in tightly packed streets.
Deputy Commissioner Nadeem Nasir said the factory was roughly 25 years old and acknowledged that nearly 100 factories now operate within the settlement, creating a hazardous mix of industrial activity and expanding residential blocks. Authorities have launched a search for the factory owner as investigators probe possible negligence or safety violations.
Rescue 1122 deployed more than 20 ambulances and fire tenders, with workers combing through rubble late into the night in search of survivors. The service said the blast caused both the factory roof and adjacent house roofs to collapse in the Shahab Town area near the Kabbadi Stadium.
