Two labourers died of suffocation on a cargo ship carrying soya beans at the Karachi Port Trust (KPT).
Faisal Subzwari, the Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs, confirmed the deaths in a tweet.
Later, he denied reports of toxic gas leakage.
The latest incident sparked panic in the same way that the 2020 gas leakage incident from a container carrying soya bean docked at KPT did. It claimed the lives of 14 people and affected over 300 others.
Late Monday night, two labourers entered a hatch of a ship carrying soya beans by mistake and died as a result of dust particles and suffocation. The bodies of the workers were recovered from the ship’s hatch and transported to a hospital.
A ship carrying 62,000 tonnes of soya bean was docked at the East Wharf, according to police.
Faisal Subzwari, Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs, confirmed the deaths on Twitter and dismissed reports of toxic gas leakage.
“Unfortunately, two labourers entered the ship through the wrong hatch at East Wharf.” They suffocated due to an abundance of dust particles and a lack of oxygen. “A rescue operation is underway, and one body was recovered just minutes ago,” he said.
Later, Federal Minister also posted a video of rescue efforts, saying, “we all standing here, including chairman KPT and other workers, even though there is no toxic gas,” and adding, “another body of labour has also been recovered.”
Faisal Subzwari went on to say that a high-level investigation has been launched and that the report will be made public within 24 hours.
