At least 44 people were killed, and over 20 others sustained severe injuries by a devastating fire on Thursday night, which engulfed a commercial building in the capital’s Baily Road area that housed several restaurants.
Firefighters rescued 70 people, including 42 in unconscious state, from the rooftop and different floors of the seven-storey Green Cozy Cottage.
Health Minister Dr Samanta Lal Sen, Dhaka-8 lawmaker AFM Bahauddin Nasim, and senior officials of different law enforcement agencies visited the spot.
Addressing the media at 2am, Dr Sen reported 33 deceased bodies at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, with an additional 10 fatalities at the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery. Subsequently, the Inspector General of Police confirmed another death at the Central Police Hospital.
IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun held the press briefing at 2.40am in front of DMC, announcing that 44 people had died and 75 had been rescued. Some of the rescued individuals received first aid treatment before returning home safely.
Most of the people died as they jumped off the building or from burns or suffocation, said firefighters who brought the fire under control around 12.30am. Smoke was still brewing from the building at that time.
The first death was reported around 1am when the firefighters took the bodies one by one to a freezing truck waiting outside the building.
The fire broke out at the restaurant named “Kacchi Bhai” on the first floor around 9.45pm. Many people were dining in the restaurants when the fire spread to other floors.
Thirteen units of Fire Service were working to bring the blaze under control. Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), General Ansar and Ansar Guard Battalion (AGB) were deployed on the spot.
Fire officials say the blaze spread fast due to the presence of gas cylinders on several floors in the restaurant kitchens. People could not leave the building due to smoke in the staircase.
Dhaka Tribune's Ali Asif Shawon, Md Saidun Nabi, Md Nazibur Rahman, Sk Sharifuddin Ahad, Partha Saha, and Aminul Islam Babu contributed to this report.
