When Fire Starts, the Minutes Matter: Lessons from Punjab’s 2024–26 Incidents

Punjab, Pakistan · Coverage: 3 November 2024 – 3 November 2026

Fires across Punjab have struck industrial estates, chemical units, warehouses, a hotel and a bakery. Together, these incidents show how electrical faults, gas leaks, hazardous materials and delayed reporting can turn a local emergency into a threat to workers and nearby communities.

What the records show

The Punjab Commission on the Status of Women’s Gender Parity Report 2023–24, using Rescue 1122 data, records 20,665 fire emergencies in 2023 and 28,018 in 2024. The report’s text describes that rise as 26%, but the figures calculate to about 35.6%; the counts are used here. Lahore recorded the most cases in 2024, followed by Faisalabad and Rawalpindi.

A separate Rescue 1122 figure for 2025, reported by The Express Tribune, records 28,495 fire incidents, 99 deaths and more than 1,000 injuries. The leading reported cause was short circuits, followed by negligence, gas leaks, candles and kitchen fires. These figures cover fires of all kinds, not industrial fires alone. Rescue 1122’s public performance dashboard provides district totals from 2004 through 31 October 2026, but not a total for this exact rolling two-year period.

Incidents that illustrate the risk

• Sundar Industrial Estate, November 2024: A fire broke out at an auto-parts factory. No injuries had been reported at the time of the news report, and the cause and full extent of damage were not yet known. ProPakistani’s report.
• Multan, January 2025: An LPG truck caught fire and exploded near an industrial area. The death toll rose from five to 18 in the following week. Police said an initial investigation found that LPG was being transferred from the truck into cylinders; the explosion damaged nearby homes and shops. Associated Press coverage.
• Sundar Industrial Estate, April and June 2025: A fire at the Mano Salwa factory in April spread quickly through raw material and damaged goods; part of the roof reportedly collapsed, but no injuries were reported. In June, a separate factory fire burned for about 12 hours, involved roughly four kanals of factory space, and required ten Rescue 1122 vehicles. The cause was not known in the reports, and no casualties were reported. Dawn’s April report and Aaj News’ June report.
• Malikpur, Faisalabad, November 2025: An explosion and fire at a chemical factory damaged nearby buildings and homes. A preliminary inquiry, as reported by The Express Tribune, cited flammable chemical storage, untrained handling, and a cylinder leak combined with an electrical short circuit; it said no boiler was installed. Later reporting said the final cause had not been conclusively established and the inquiry findings had not been made public. Casualty counts also differ between reports: one account recorded 20 deaths, while a September 2026 report cited 21. Preliminary findings and September 2026 inquiry update.
• Faisalabad, December 2025: Rescue 1122 said a broken steel blade from a machine ignited a pile of old clothes in a textile factory. Three workers died after becoming trapped in the fire. Dawn’s report.
• Lahore, January and April 2026: A basement fire at the Indigo Hotel killed three people and injured eight; about 180 guests and staff were evacuated. Investigators were checking whether a gas leak caused the blaze. In April, a fire at a paint factory on Multan Road caused no reported casualties, but officials said flammable materials intensified the fire and initial findings suggested inadequate safety arrangements may have contributed to its spread. AP’s hotel report and The Express Tribune’s paint-factory report.
• Lahore, April and November 2026: Three children died after becoming trapped in a scrap warehouse fire in China Scheme; the cause had not been determined. On 1 November, a gas leak and cylinder explosion at a bakery factory in Gulberg killed one worker and injured eight, and part of the floor collapsed. The provincial labour minister sought a report and ordered an investigation. Dawn on the warehouse fire and APP’s bakery report.

The cases point to recurring hazards: electrical ignition, gas leaks, combustible stock, unsafe handling of hazardous materials and ignition sources near stored goods. They also show why cause matters: investigations are incomplete in several cases, so early reports should not be treated as final findings.

Government policy – and the work still required

Punjab’s Emergency Services Department publishes the Punjab Community Safety Act 2021 and Community Safety Buildings Regulations 2022. The regulations set requirements for fire detection and alarms, manual call points, hydrants and sprinklers, extinguishers, clear exits, evacuation plans, trained safety managers and drills at least twice a year. They also provide for building safety certificates that must be renewed annually. Punjab Civil Defence lists inspection of fire-safety measures in industrial, commercial and high-rise buildings among its duties and says non-compliance can lead to legal action. Civil Defence inspection mandate.

In January 2026, the provincial government ordered stricter implementation of the building regulations; the meeting was told that a survey of 2,214 high-rise buildings had been completed. In September, the Emergency Services Department circulated amended building regulations for commercial, industrial, healthcare and residential multi-storey buildings and warehouses. The changes include additional exit staircases based on floor area and occupancy, video-based smoke and fire detection, trained safety staff, and manual alarm call points. January implementation report and Dawn’s report on the amendments.

The practical test is consistent compliance: inspections that check working equipment, safe storage, clear exits and trained staff – not just paperwork. Factories should audit wiring and gas systems, certify and maintain pressure equipment, separate chemicals and other flammables from ignition sources, and control hot work with permits and fire watches. Every shift should know how to raise an alarm, evacuate, account for workers and guide responders to the incident. Industrial estate managers can reinforce this with site-wide inspections, accessible fire-water supplies and clear access roads.

How Dexign Box can add value at Sundar

Dexign Box has taken its first step with BOMSIE leadership by implementing a Panic Button and Emergency Response System for residents and industries in Sundar Industrial Estate. The system provides a simple way for industries to report incidents within the first minute of occurrence, helping connect them quickly with the rescue team.

The objective is to establish a reliable communication link between industries and emergency responders so that incidents can be reported early, assistance can be provided promptly, losses can be minimized, and, most importantly, lives can be protected. With this initial step, we believe Sundar Industrial Estate can strengthen its emergency preparedness and reduce the number and impact of industrial incidents in the coming years.

The Panic Button system is designed to work alongside required fire alarms and call points, detection and suppression equipment, clear emergency exits, and regular safety drills. Its primary purpose is early reporting: enabling workers, security staff, and management to call for help quickly, identify the affected plot or building, notify designated responders, and support a faster Rescue 1122 response.

Book a free demo on WhatsApp →