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Dozens Killed In Massive Bangladesh Blaze

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

DHAKA (Worthy News) – At least 43 people were killed late Thursday after a fire broke out in a six-story building in Bangladesh, the country’s health minister said about the latest tragedy to hit the troubled South Asian nation.

The blaze began in a restaurant at around 22:00 local time on Thursday in the capital, Dhaka, and quickly spread to other floors, witnesses said.

Besides those killed, at least 22 people were injured and rushed to hospitals with burn wounds, Health Minister Samanta Lal Sen told reporters after visiting the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze, which was under control after two hours of frantic efforts by 13 firefighting units, the fire service officials said.

Survivor Mohammad Altaf, speaking to reporters, recounted narrowly escaping the blaze through a broken window. Two of his coworkers perished, he said.

“We were on the sixth floor when we first saw smoke racing through the staircase,” said a restaurant manager called Sohel. “A lot of people rushed upstairs. We used a water pipe to climb down the building. Some of us were injured as they jumped from upstairs,” Sohel told media.

DOZENS KILLED

Bangladesh’s Health Minister, Samanta Lal Sen, said that at least 33 people, including women and children, were declared dead at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

At least 10 others died at the city’s main burns hospital. Dozens more people have been sent there for treatment, Sen added.

The complex that the building is in also contains other restaurants, as well as several clothing and mobile phone shops.

Thursday’s blaze underscored broader concerns about fire hazards in impoverished Bangladesh in part due to what experts say are inadequate building codes, regulations, and poor safety awareness.

As in Thursday’s case, deadly fires often break out in businesses.

More than 2,000 workers and other staff reportedly died in dozens of blazes in factories alone over the past two decades, besides the many killed in other buildings.