More than 100 makeshift homes have been destroyed by a huge fire in Pakistan, but no lives were lost in the blaze, police have said.

The fire ripped through the Teenhatti neighborhood in the southern city of Karachi on Tuesday night.

More than 100 shelters made of hessian and plastic were lost in the flames, area police chief Liaquat Hayyat said, adding that firefighters quickly put the fire out but could not save the homes.

There were no casualties, police said.

Ministers have promised to provide tents for those who lost their homes, but a woman interviewed on TV outside her burned home said she was still waiting for help from the government.


Hundreds of nomadic families live in makeshift houses in the area and many of them were forced to spend the night in the open in winter temperatures.

TV pictures showed a massive fire sweeping through the shelters as people cried for help.

One tearful woman whose home was burned said the dowry for her daughter's marriage she worked for years to build was gutted by the blaze in minutes.

Hours after the fire, inhabitants were seen retrieving utensils and other items from the ashes.