KARACHI: A medical board, constituted by the health department to ascertain causes of deaths of 18 people in Keamari earlier this year, has come to the conclusion that the release of toxic gases from a nearby illegal industrial area was the main reason behind the deaths, it emerged on Wednesday.

The conclusion was drawn on the basis of the findings of post-mortem, histopathology, toxicology and virology reports for which the board had exhumed eight bodies on the directions of a judicial magistrate concerned.

“Findings are highly suggestive that the manner of death was unnatural and factors like measles were less likely to contribute to the cause of death,” said the report reviewed by Dawn on Wednesday.

The 18 deaths of people from various age groups, mostly between two to four years, were reported in Ali Mohammed Goth in Keamari between January 5 and 31.

Deaths in Ali Mohammed Goth stopped following closure of illegal factories in January, probe finds…

On Feb 1, the provincial government had constituted a medical board and appointed Prof Naseem Ahmed of the Dow University of Health Sciences as its head. Other members were Prof Makhdoom Pervez Ahmed of the Jinnah Sindh Medical University, Dr Azizullah Khan Dhiloo of the Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK) and Police Surgeon Summaiya Syed.

“The causative factor for the death of people in the affected area due to this tragic incident was mainly environmental, possible due to release of some toxic/poisonous gases from adjacent/ neighbouring illegal industrial area leading to acute lung injury and subsequent severe allergic reaction (allergic pneumonitis) complicated by respiratory distress leading to respiratory failure,” the inquiry report added.

The board ruled out the possibility that the victims died of measles.

It said that the members of the board also assessed infectious aetiology that was less likely the cause of death “due to absence of hallmark symptoms and signs”.

“There were no clinical cases of measles in the area albeit, positive serology indicates toward need of stringent vaccination campaign in the area,” it added.

The board members also complained about certain difficulties and hindrances during the process of inquiry.

“The board members visited the area after closure of the industrial activities; therefore, it was not possible to acquire samples of the air and possible dangerous toxic gases that were notice/stated by the district health officer’s team on January 26,” it said.

The board also criticised the DHO-Keamari and his staff for their non-cooperative behaviour throughout the conduct of the inquiry.

In order to avoid such a tragedy in future, the board has suggested a host of recommendations ranging from immediate stoppage / restriction/ removal of all industrial activities from the residential area to immediate plan to immunise the residents.

Other recommendations included provision of dispensary / mobile healthcare facility and improving nutritional status of malnourished children through the nutritional rehabilitation programme.

Besides, the report also suggested development of infrastructure and schools and provision of safe spaces for women and children, etc.

The report stated that most deaths occurred after a factory started functioning in the area on Jan 5.

“The deaths stopped after the closure of the plastic burning factory,” the probe report stated.

The final inquiry report also cited the soil samples report from the Industrial Analytical Centre (IAC), University of Karachi, which revealed “presence of hydrocarbons, phthalates (plasticizers), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, easters, oxiranes and diaoxolane in all four samples”.

“Almost all of these are associated with environmental pollution,” the report of the board said.

Abdul Haleem was the only child among 18 deaths whose post-mortem examination was conducted at the CHK.

The IAC’s report said that phthalates (plasticizers) were found in the samples of the deceased child. Similarly, NIH Islamabad report said that the symptoms for dengue, measles and rubella were negative.

The medical board came to the conclusion that the death of the child occurred “due to acute-on-chronic inflammation of lungs/superimposed bacterial infection, leading to lung congestion”.

Published in Dawn, April 6th, 2023