At least 44 people were killed and dozens of others injured in a fire that started from a restaurant which ravaged a seven-story building in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, on Thursday, February 29, the government announced.
“So far, there have been 43 deaths” in the disaster, Health Minister Samanta Lal Sen told AFP after visiting the Dhaka University Hospital and another nearby establishment specializing in the treatment of serious burn victims, where at least 40 injured people had been admitted.
Police inspector Bacchu Mia said another person died at Dhaka's main police hospital, bringing the death toll to 44.
Around forty injured people are being treated in a specific burn hospital, added Samanta Lal Sen.
“None of them are out of danger,” he told AFP.
The fire broke out at 9:50 p.m. (1550 GMT) on Thursday at a popular restaurant on Bailey Road, in a wealthy area of the capital, and quickly spread upstairs, trapping many people, said Mohammad Shihab, a fire official.
The fire was brought under control in two hours, he said.
In total, 75 people were rescued, according to a press release from the firefighters.
Suspected gas bottle
Firefighters told reporters they suspected the explosion of a gas cylinder in the restaurant as the probable cause of the fire.
The fire "quickly crossed the upper floor because there were restaurants on almost every floor of the building. They use gas cylinders," said a firefighter, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The government ordered an investigation.
Bailey Road is mainly home to restaurants as well as several clothing and mobile phone stores.
"We were on the sixth floor when we started seeing smoke coming through the stairs. Many people rushed to go upstairs," said Sohel, a restaurant manager.
"We used a water pipe to go down. Some of us were injured while jumping," he said.
Others were stuck on the roof and calling for help.
"We are bringing down all the women and children, including my wife and children. All of us men are on the roof. The firefighters are by our side. We still have fifty people to bring down," he said. writes Kamruzzaman Majumdar, a professor of environmental sciences, on Facebook.
He was then rescued.
Hundreds of relatives of the victims rushed to Dhaka Medical University Hospital where ambulances transported the dead and injured.
Fires in apartment buildings and industrial complexes are common in Bangladesh due to lax enforcement of safety regulations.
In July 2021, at least 52 people died, including many children, when flames devastated a food factory.
In February 2019, 70 people died when a fire spread across several apartment buildings in Dhaka.
With AFP
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