A recurring evil has struck Bangladesh.
At least 43 people were killed and dozens injured in a fire that ravaged a seven-story building in an upscale neighborhood of Dhaka, the country's capital, on Thursday evening, the government announced.
“So far, there have been 43 deaths” in the disaster, Health Minister Samanta Lal Sen told AFP after visiting the Dhaka Medical College hospital and another nearby establishment specializing in the treatment of serious burn victims, where at least 40 injured people had been admitted.
Mohammad Shihab, a fire official, said the fire broke out at a popular restaurant on Bailey Road on Thursday at 9:50 p.m. (4:50 p.m. in France) and quickly spread upstairs, trapping many people.
The fire was brought under control in two hours, he said.
In total, 75 people were rescued, according to a press release from the firefighters.
Bailey Road is mainly home to restaurants as well as several clothing and mobile phone stores.
Frequent fires in Bangladesh
“We were on the sixth floor when we started seeing smoke coming up the stairs.
Many people rushed upstairs, said Sohel, a restaurant manager.
As for us, we used a water pipe to go down.
Some of us were injured while jumping.
» Others were stuck on the roof and calling for help.
“We are bringing down all the women and children, including my wife and children.
All of us men are on the roof.
The firefighters are at our side.
We still have fifty people to bring down,” Kamruzzaman Majumdar, an environmental science professor, wrote on Facebook before being rescued in turn.
Fires in apartment buildings and industrial complexes are common in Bangladesh due to lax enforcement of safety regulations.
In July 2021, at least 52 people died, including many children, when flames devastated a food factory.
In February 2019, 70 people died when a fire spread across several apartment buildings in Dhaka.