Pak authorities collect DNA samples to help identify victims
Karachi, Jan 22: Pakistani authorities have collected DNA samples from 50 individuals to help confirm the identities of the 61 bodies recovered so far from the rubble of the perished shopping plaza in Karachi, even as the search operation continued on Thursday to find more bodies. The fire broke out in the basement of the Gul Shopping Plaza, a wholesale and retail market, and quickly spread to the rest of the building in the Saddar area on Saturday night. The fire was brought under control only after 36 hours had passed. The death toll in the fire increased to 61 on Wednesday after 30 bodies were recovered from a single shop on the mezzanine floor of the building. Sindh police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed said the DNA samples have been collected from some 50 people who are claiming their loved ones or relatives are still missing in the fire. “Of the 61 bodies we have recovered so far, only 12 have been identified because most of the bodies are burnt beyond recognition. In some cases, we have just recovered body parts,” she said. (PTI)
Gunman at large in Australia after leaving 3 dead, 1 wounded
Melbourne, Jan 22: A gunman was at large after a shooting in a town in Australia’s New South Wales state on Thursday left three people dead and another wounded, police said. Emergency services were called to two locations at Lake Cargelligo, a town of around 1,500 people, after 4 pm. Two couples, a man and woman, had been shot in each location within minutes, Police Assistant Commissioner Andy Holland said. Both women and a man died. Another man was taken to hospital in serious but stable condition, he said. Police knew the identity of a suspect, but did not know his relationship with the victims, who were all Lake Cargelligo locals, Holland said. The suspect’s name has not been released. The victims were the suspect’s former partner, two of her relatives and her new partner, Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported, citing unnamed police sources. State police were working to locate the suspect and had sent resources from neighbouring districts to the town, including heavily armed tactical police, Holland said. The town had been cordoned off to prevent the suspect’s escape. (AP)
Several missing after landslide hits holiday park in New Zealand
Wellington, Jan 22: Several people, including children, are missing after a large landslide struck a holiday park at the base of Mount Maunganui in New Zealand’s Bay of Plenty region on Thursday. Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell said search and rescue efforts were continuing at the Beachside Holiday Park. He described the event as a ‘tragedy’, telling reporters that “parents and the husband of some of the people that we’re currently trying to rescue” were in the campground. An official said rescuers initially heard voices from under the debris but none since, and no survivors had yet been found. The slip swept through campervans, cars, tents, hot pools, and a shower block at around 9:30 a.m. local time, triggering evacuations across the site. (IANS)
