Goods worth almost Tk3 crore have been destroyed by a fire inside a multi-storey building at the Janata Bank intersection of Pabna.
Eyewitnesses say the fire originated on the ground floor of the six-storey building around 4:30am Monday. It later spread to the second and third floors.
Pabna Fire Service Assistant Director M Saiful Islam said: “We are yet to identify the source of the fire, but suspect that an electric short-circuit started it. It took 10 units of the fire service 2.5 hours to bring the blaze under control.
“10 businesses, including an insurance firm and a pharmacy, have been damaged by the blaze,” he added.
Later, Pabna Deputy Commissioner Md Jasim Uddin and Superintendent of Police Sheikh Rafiqul Islam inspected the location.
Eyewitnesses also said the building comprises many different business establishments – including the Rupali, Pubali, Jamuna, and First Security Islami banks; an office of Bijoy Television; as well as many restaurants and shops.
There are also 36 families living in residential apartments on the upper floors.
Locals believe the fire may have originated from the Apex showroom in the building.
