NEW DELHI, January 9 (RIA Novosti) - At least 40 people were killed after a fire broke out in a shanty town in Karachi, in southern Pakistan, local media reported on Friday.
Some 15 children and women were among those killed in the fatal blaze that occurred in the north of the city just before midnight when most residents were asleep, Geo TV said.
Another 40 people were injured and hospitalized, according to preliminary reports.
"Sleeping residents were reportedly engulfed by fire, which spread so rapidly that many victims were unable to even flee the shacks in which they live. Some of the dead were burned beyond recognition," Geo TV said in the report.
Local officials said the fire had started when a power wire fell onto the roof of a hut. An investigation is underway.
