KARACHI, Oct 29: A three-storey industrial unit that produced printing and packaging material in Gulbai near the SITE area was completely burnt and destroyed in a fire that broke out on Saturday night and died out after more than 24 hours on Monday morning, officials said.

A part of the building also came down, the officials added.

They said that the fire broke out on the ground floor of Madex Incorporation and enveloped the three floors of the building and spread to two other blocks of the industrial unit.

Initially two fire engines were sent to the scene, but within half an hour the fire was declared of ‘phase-three’ category and all fire engines and two snorkels in the city were called in.

“There were dozens of chemical drums inside the industrial unit, which were not stored in an organised way,” said chief fire officer Ehtashamuddin.

“The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained as firefighters are still busy in the cooling process after 30-hour-long firefighting and the process would take some time. We have so far identified thinner among the multiple kinds of other inflammable materials.”He said that the industrial unit produced and printed packaging material of different products that mainly included edible items.

The process required different kinds of chemicals as raw material, but none of them was kept in a standardised manner.

“There was no casualty, as no workman was present inside the industrial unit except a few watchmen who informed the owners and the fire department about the incident,” he said. The officials said that the fire was so strong that it kept firefighters at bay for more than 15 hours, who attempted to douse the flames from the outside of the factory.

The huge blaze melted the iron in the foundations of the factory and finally the rear portion of the building collapsed on Sunday night.

“The fire has died out, but parts of the factory are still vulnerable. More than 15 fire engines, two snorkels and nearly 100 firefighters from all stations of the city took part in the operation,” said an official at the central fire office.