A dramatic incident unfolded on Thursday when a motorcyclist became trapped in an open sewer on a busy road in Orangi Town, highlighting persistent infrastructure hazards plaguing Pakistan’s largest city. The shocking moment, captured in a viral video of the motorcyclist plunging into sinkhole in Karachi, has triggered renewed calls for immediate safety reforms.
According to eyewitnesses and social media footage, the rider approached a section of road near Orangi Town Sector 14 when the pavement suddenly collapsed beneath him, sending both rider and bike into an uncovered sewage channel. Rescue workers arrived shortly afterward and freed the injured man, who was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Local citizens said the sewerage opening had been left exposed for weeks, posing risks to motorists, pedestrians and the growing traffic along the route.
City officials have not yet released a formal statement on whether the sewer was reported earlier, but residents lament that such dangerous gaps in Karachi’s road infrastructure remain common across many neighbourhoods.
The video of the motorcyclist trapped in open sewers has been widely shared on platforms such as Twitter and TikTok, sparking public outrage over unbearable road conditions. Social media users pointed to similar recent incidents, including toddlers falling into uncovered drains, as evidence of systemic negligence. In a widely covered case in the previous month, the body of a three-year-old boy was recovered after falling into an uncovered manhole near Nipa Chowrangi, a tragedy that lasted more than 14 hours during search operations.
That incident prompted protests in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and led to suspensions and an official inquiry ordered by the Karachi mayor, but many locals say progress has been slow. Frequent reports of open sewers, broken manhole covers, and sinkholes deepening after recent rains have kept civic grievances alive.
As Karachi’s citizens demanded safer streets, traffic experts urged the municipal corporation to accelerate infrastructure audits and repair programs to prevent further tragedies.
The motorcyclist trapped in open sewer Karachi incident once again underscores the urgency for coordinated action to secure the city’s roads before more lives are lost.
