A devastating fire in Sreepur, Gazipur, completely incinerated 14 semi-pucca rooms of garment workers, reducing all belongings, including wardrobes, cooking utensil shelves, beds, and electronics, to ashes.
The fire broke out in the Maona Uttarpara area of the Maona union in the upazila, at a building owned by the late Fazlul Haq, around 10:45am on Friday.
Ariful Islam, a local, reported that the fire started in one of the rooms of the house around 10:45am. Despite attempts from locals to put out the fire, it quickly spread to the other thirteen rooms.
These rooms were rented by workers from various nearby garment factories.
The fire consumed all the belongings of the garment workers, leaving them destitute.
Many of the workers had locked their rooms and gone to their villages or were out with their families due to the Eid holidays.
Maona Fire Service and Civil Defence Warehouse Inspector Abdul Mannan said that upon receiving the news at 10:53am, the firefighters reached the scene and managed to bring the fire under control after almost half an hour.
However, by that time, the fire had engulfed all belongings in the rooms.
The cause of the fire and the exact extent of the damage will be determined following an investigation, he added.