Karachi: The death toll from the five-storey residential building collapse in Karachi's Lyari has risen to 17 as more bodies were recovered from the debris, the Pakistani authorities said on Saturday.  

Emergency responders have rescued nine injured survivors so far, but officials fear at least 25 to 30 more people may still be buried beneath the debris, reported Pakistan's Express Tribune newspaper.

The building, which housed six families, collapsed early Friday morning. Among those confirmed dead are three women and a child.

The incident has triggered scenes of panic and distress in Pakistan's southern port city where several buildings have been declared unfit for occupation.

The officials revealed that the decades-old building, located in Lyari's congested Baghdadi area, was declared unsafe three years ago. However, the residents did not evacuate the premises and nor did the authorities take any enforcement action. Each floor of the building reportedly contained three apartments.

Karachi South Deputy Commissioner Javed Khoso confirmed to the Pakistani daily that the building's residents were served notices in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Of 107 dangerous buildings in the district, 21 are classified as highly hazardous, and 14 have already been vacated, he stated.

As the search operation continues for over 24 hours, District South Deputy Commissioner Javed Khoso on Saturday told Geo News that it may take up to eight to 10 hours to complete the rescue operation.

He said that there were still 22 extremely dangerous buildings in Lyari — of which 16 have been evacuated.

Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi also advised the residents of the damaged buildings to move to another place to avoid any mishap.

"We cannot forcefully evict anyone," the commissioner was quoted as saying by Geo News, adding that he will hold a meeting with the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) on the issue of illegal constructions. (IANS)