One dead and three injured as ceiling of Pearl Continental collapses in Karachi

The ceiling of the renowned five-star hotel Pearl Continental in Karachi collapsed, due to which three people were injured and one died.

The management of the hotel is yet to issue a statement on the matter. The police said that the collapse was because of an ‘old and ill-maintained false’ ceiling of the lobby on the ground floor of PC.

South Senior Superintendent of Police Asad Raza said that the roof was old and had not been maintained for quite some time. He added that details and facts of the incident would be revealed after a thorough investigation, but it is likely that the ceiling fell due to leakage or wind pressure.

”However, it proved fatal because the false ceiling was made of concrete material. One person has lost his life in the incident,” he said. Eyewitnesses present at the scene said that the roof gave in some time after 11pm, which triggered panic in the hotel. Pearl Continental had a moderate number of visitors when the incident occurred.

Footage and images are making round of social media, which show the entire lobby of the hotel covered in rubble.

Pearl Continental PC Karachi's lobby Roof has been fallen down Injured one gentleman underneath pic.twitter.com/5ybdvprjv2

— Syed Kamran Farhat (@SyedKamranFarh1) May 26, 2022

After the ceiling fell, the management closed entrances to the hotel and evacuated visitors through two exits. Multiple ambulances of charity organizations and the government arrived at the hotel. Two fire tenders were also seen parked outside.

In a statement, Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, confirmed the incident and said that rescue operation was underway. The deceased is yet to be identified. Rescuers hurried at the scene to shift the body and the injured to the hospital. Further investigations are underway.

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