A total of 29 people, including teachers and children, have been killed in the Milestone School and College jet crash so far, and 69 have been injured. One of them is Sabuja Begum, 42, a nanny at Milestone School and College.
As of Wednesday night, she was undergoing treatment at the emergency department of the burn unit of the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute in Dhaka. Sabuja Begum suffered burns on about 8% of her body, including her face and hands, in the fire.
Talking about Sabuja Begum's current condition, her daughter Rumana Akhter said: "Some parts of my mother's body, face, and hands have been burned. The doctor said she is now mostly normal. But not risk-free."
Sabuja Begum had been working at Milestone College for the past 16 years. She was especially responsible for looking after the children of the play group. She lived next to the college with her widowed daughter Rumana Akhter. She had been suffering from kidney disease for a long time.
Rumana Akhter said: "It's been 40 days since my father died. In the meantime, my mother had this accident. I have no one else except my mother. I just want to bring my mother back home healthy."
Describing the day of the incident, Rumana said: "We found Amma at Dhaka Medical College. Even in an unconscious state, she kept saying that she had to save the children. As far as I know from Amma and others, she was standing in the field in front of the building where the accident occurred, waiting for the school holidays on July 21.
“She would finish her classroom work as soon as the students came out. But just before the holidays, a plane suddenly landed on the building. Fire spread instantly. At the time of the accident, Amma was not seriously injured. But when the children were screaming for help, she went inside the building to take the children out and took them to a safe place. By then, her body was badly burned. Later, the army arrived and took her and the injured children to the hospital."
Rumana said: "My mother is the only breadwinner in our family. The salary she gets from school somehow keeps us going. I just want my mother to get adequate treatment. It is possible if everyone cooperates."
Dr Shawon Bin Rahman, resident surgeon (RS) of the emergency department of the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute, confirmed that 8% of her body was burned and treatment is underway.