At least one prisoner died and more than 200 of them escaped from a Pakistani prison when they were shifted outside their cells after an earthquake hit Karachi city on Monday.

Sindh Home Minister Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar told Arab News that the inmates in Malir prison started to panic when tremors were felt in the Pakistani city.

He said it became difficult for authorities to prevent the prisoners from escaping the jail after its outer gate was damaged due to an earthquake.

“The incident occurred when prisoners were temporarily moved out of their barracks due to safety concerns,” Inspector-General Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon told Arab News.

“Taking advantage of the chaos, around 1,000 inmates gathered at the jail’s main gate and 213 prisoners managed to force the gate open and flee,” Menon said.

Some of them have been rearrested

Memon said some of the prisoners, who escaped the jail, have been rearrested.

Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar confirmed no “hardened criminal” escaped the prison during Monday's jail-break.

Memon said Malir prison houses small-time offenders, particularly those involved in narcotics and its consumption.

“The escapees were mostly from this category and their mob mentality played a role in escaping the jail,” he said.

The Sindh Home Minister said five persons, including both prisoners and police officials, were injured in the incident.

As many as 6,000 prisoners are present in the jail, the largest in Karachi.