KARACHI: Five people, including women and children, were injured after falling into an uncovered drain in Karachi’s Korangi district on Saturday, according to rescue officials.
The incident took place in Mehran Town when the individuals were on their way back from a function and accidentally slipped into the open drain. Emergency services were alerted and promptly arrived at the scene, rescuing all five victims.
Officials said that three of the affected individuals were unconscious at the time of rescue and were shifted to a nearby hospital for medical treatment, while the others received on-site assistance.
The incident once again highlights the persistent danger posed by uncovered drains and manholes across the city. Last year, more than two dozen people most of them children lost their lives after falling into open manholes, as authorities failed to ensure proper coverage across the metropolis.
In a similar incident last month, the body of a three-year-old boy who fell into an open manhole near the Nipa flyover in Gulshan-e-Iqbal was recovered after a 14-hour search. Rescue teams later found the child’s body in a drain about one kilometre from where he had fallen.
Responding to public criticism over the growing number of such incidents, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab previously urged that the issue not be politicized, stating that if a drain cover is removed and left aside by someone, it should not be turned into a political controversy.
