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5 people plunge to their deaths trying to escape burning building in Pakistan

Associated Press
Published | Updated

A man jumps from a building that caught on fire in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, May 9, 2013. The 13-storey government building caught fire and quickly intensified spreading to three floors of the tall building. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary) (The Associated Press)

Pakistanis pray for people stranded in a building that caught on fire, not pictured, in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, May 9, 2013. The 13-storey government building caught fire and quickly intensified spreading to three floors of the tall building. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary) (The Associated Press)

A Pakistani man moments before jumping from the fifth floor of a building that caught on fire in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, May 9, 2013. The 13-storey government building caught fire and quickly intensified spreading to three floors of the tall building. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary) (The Associated Press)

Police say five people have plunged to their deaths trying to escape a burning government building in eastern Pakistan.

Police officer Maruf Wahla says the death toll could rise, since firefighters have not been able to enter all areas of the nine-story building in the city of Lahore.

Local TV stations broadcast dramatic footage of people jumping from the Lahore Development Authority building Thursday as smoke poured from the windows. A crowd of horrified Pakistanis stood at the base of the building looking up.

Wahla says the fire started with a spark from a generator. Many buildings in Pakistan have their own generators because of frequent electricity outages.