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Arif Ali / AFP - Getty Images
An injured woman is removed from a collapsed factory in Lahore, Pakistan, on Monday.
LAHORE, Pakistan -- Rescue workers struggled to reach dozens of people trapped in the rubble of a factory that collapsed in an eastern Pakistani city Monday, killing at least nine, officials said.
The factory, which manufactured medicine, was set up illegally in a residential area of Lahore. It caved in after several gas cylinders inside exploded, said the city's deputy commissioner, Ahad Cheema. Authorities had previously closed the factory three times, but each time it reopened.
The factory was owned by a local politician, who used his influence to keep it open despite complaints from neighbors, said local resident Munawar Ali.
Powerful Pakistanis often use their influence to circumvent the law and extract illegal profits.
Records indicate there were around 60 people, including women and children, inside the factory when it collapsed, said Rizwan Naseer, head of the state-run rescue service in Punjab province, of which Lahore is the capital.
The nine dead people who were pulled out included five women, three boys and one adult man, said Naseer. Authorities rescued 11 people, and several others managed to extricate themselves. At least 32 people were still believed to be trapped, he said.
Rescue workers were having a difficult time digging out others under the rubble because the narrow streets around the factory made it hard to get heavy machinery to the site, said Naseer.
A young girl, Shakila Iqrar, wept at the scene as she told reporters that her cousin and older sister were trapped under the huge slabs of concrete.
"There were voices coming from inside, but now they are not coming," said Iqrar. "I want to ask to all of you to please get them out quickly."
Leave a Comment:
Is it a news?
While most are hung on Islam, looting, raping, kidnapping and killing, what can work?
Just like this there will be only blasts, some smaller ones and some bigger ones.
Within a decade, Pakistan will be next Somalia!
By the by, they need our tax monies for helping them!
Yes, they work, but they mostly work in factories that make consumer goods for the West--Nike, Calvin Klein, American Eagle,, etc for $.25/hour, (adults and children.) It's called labor exploitation and it's base is in our so called "free market." Per salary.com, software engineers make the big bucks there--$5/hour.
Regarding the aid that Pakistan gets from the US, I don't think our government should be paying it. Our corporations should pay by being hit with duties that would make the product cost the equivalent of what a worker in the US would have made.
The story is about workers in a sweat shop working to make goods, (medicine in this case), and it was likely headed to the US. Lives lost for our corporations to increase that bottom line---at any human cost.
Why do you assume this "medicine" was for export? I just found this on Google from another incident from February 2nd:
KARACHI, Pakistan — Pakistani authorities have closed a drug factory alleged to have made faulty heart medicine that killed over 100 patients.
Government investigator Akbar Baluch said on Thursday that tests from a laboratory in London showed that tablets produced in the facility contained massive doses of anti-malarial medicine that poisoned heart patients.
He says the factory in Karachi made over nine million IsoTab tablets.
Some were handed out to patients in the eastern Punjab province, where all the deaths occurred.
Health officials have said over 100 deaths in Punjab have been linked to consumption of the drug in the last few weeks.
Yeah, just keep blaming the west! Even if they are making 25 cents an hour.. IT'S BETTER THAN NO JOB AT ALL! They could have a prosperous country if they become more open and reject violent religion.
By the way, NO JOB AT ALL is exactly what they Pakistan government is providing them!
Why any one buys medicine from Pakistan? It may be poisonous or dangerous one!
medicine? hmm sounds like that accidental explosion in Iran at a nuclear research facility
Yeah, sure---check your closet and see where those Nike shoes or Klein shirts were made--by children in sweat shops. A nuclear explosion? You folks need to travel outside the US to understand sh1t.
Yeah, yeah... it's all someone else's fault, isn't it?
Pakistan should be a thriving country but all the money we send them gets spent on weapons.. mostly for their long conflict with India. Here is the real answer: Live in peace, reject violent religion and spend foreign aid money on the people of Pakistan!
Are you really thinking as you type? The US spends as much as the balance of the world combined on "defense." 7 times that of China and 11 times that of Russia. Pakistan spends almost nothing. Also, check their lack of an effective delivery mechanism.
No! It will be explosions in Paki nuclear facilities after few years!
Iran is peanuts compared to Pakistan in WMDs. Instead of developing WMDs, Iran should buy or steal them from Pakistan.
If there were innocent children or women involved i pray for their families in my own catholic way. For the rest, Karma is a b1tch.
Gas cylinders? For a medicine factory? It's possible, I guess. Still, it makes one wonder.
Perhaps that is what they used to heat the factory and maybe for cooking food onsite. Many countries use gas cylinders to supply gas for cooking like some folks who do not have access to gas lines.
This is sad indeed. Such a huge loss of lives for the families.... including loss of income with breadwinners killed.
Wonder if they had rules regulations and oversight of these factories which included safety inspections etc?
Peace....
Always go to the direct source- http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-34113-2-killed-50-trapped-under-debris in Lahore,Pakistan. It was a boiler explosion .The 3-story building of a pharmaceutical company collapsed totally and 3 buildings next to it razed to the ground. At the time of the explosion there were 17 women and 45 men at work -the pharmaceutical company was producing veterinary medical products. Rescues have hard time to get nig machinery to the site due to narrow streets. People are manually trying to get to those under the debris. People should wish speedy recovery and condolences to working people anywhere.
Should be source be a Paki or Paki supporter's one?
Not many can trust a word of what they say!
May God help and protect the trapped and forgive the dead, amen! Americans can only lead the world with a respectful and positive attitude towards all. Otherwise, whats the difference between us and who we call bad?
Hopefully this was the Al-Kayduh bomb-vest factory.
Assad is a brutal dictatar,he is having thousands of thousands torture,rape and more torture till allot die.His father brutaly killed some 20,000 in Homs-like father like son.The military are killing small kis,women and everybody like it was a game because Assad knows if he can't defeat the protester his days are ove-I think in the end Assad will go down,they may hang him or shoot him,I dought they would turn him over to hague for trail.More and more military troops are defecting to the protesters which is good-they know Assad will lose in the end.What needs to happen is get allot of weapons to the protesters-anti tank rockets,anti aircraft that shoot huge bullets,allot of rifles and bullets,comunacations,medical supplys,food.arm them so well that more military troops will defect.Assad is a terrorist,he gives hexablah thousand of rocket to shoot at Israel-they say they have 20 to 40 thousand of rockets,shoulder fired anti tank rockets,shoulder fired missles to take aircraft down,land mines-everything they need to fight Israel so Assad sponcers terrorist and their best ally is Iran so I strongly feel that the protesters should be heavly armed,give the protester a fighting chance because Assad is one bad person.
America respect people in a non Christian nation ! Not hardly , according to our standards they are on par with monkeys and vermin, we preach compassion but its just for looks . Hell we blame our own staving children for their plight , they chose to be hungry according to the tea baggers , otherwise they would be working for 25 cents an hour.America has a job for everyone just ask Gingrich