Lahore, Nov. 5 : At least 18 people were killed and 55 others injured when a four-storey building collapsed in suburban Lahore last night. A dozen others are said to be strapped in the rubble.
Rescuers used the construction equipment provided by Bahria Town and the city district government to pull out the survivors and retrieve bodies, reported the Express Tribune.
There was some construction work going on on the fourth floor which gave way, damaging the three floors below and trapping dozens of workers.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Army announced that it was deploying specialist search teams and engineers to the factory.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Mamnoon Hussain have expressed their condolence on the death of the factory workers. The provincial government also announced Rs. 5,00,000 as compensation for the family members of victims.
As per reports, cracks had developed in the building after the massive earthquake on October 26 following which the government had asked the owner to repair the building. The collapse of the building is speculated to be an after-effect of the same. (ANI)