Published :
Updated :
For all latest news, follow The Financial Express Google News channel.
A wake-up call rings for mending umpteen other unsafe buildings as Thursday night's Bailey-road house blaze left 46 dead and 13 others seriously injured and struggling for life at hospitals.
Firefighters and eyewitnesses said lack of spacious staircase and haphazard gas cylinders kept for restaurants housed in the building made dousing the fire difficult and caused such high casualties of people from different walks of life.
The seven-storey building, fondly named Green Cozy Cottage Shopping Mall, in the high-society area housed eight restaurants, including popular Kacchi Bhai. A number of clothing stores that include popular ILLIYEEN were also in the building where fire broke out at around 10pm Thursday and raged until around 03.00am.
Fire Service Director-General Brigadier-General Md Main Uddin said Friday that gas cylinders were littered throughout the building, including on the staircase, and they were used for cooking.
The fireman suspects the fire originated from a cylinder on the ground floor of the mostly commercial building in the elite residential enclave.
But there was no fire-extinguishing system.
"Anyone of them or a gas stove could have exploded and caused the fire," he said, adding that detailed could only be said after investigation.
"There was only a small staircase for people to use," he said in front of the building at around 12:30pm on Friday while talking to reporters.
The narrow staircase could accommodate no more than three people descending simultaneously.
He also said the Fire Service had previously issued three notices to the building owner as part of routine monitoring.
It appears that irregularities in the building are apparent, as none of the restaurants has obtained the necessary permissions from RAJUK, and there are no fire exits in place despite repeated notices from the Fire Service.
RAJUK's Chief Town Planner Ashraful Islam said the building had permission for office use, not for restaurants and eateries,
Besides eight restaurants, the building housed a juice bar and a tea-coffee shop. There were also retail outlets for mobile phones, electronic equipment, and clothing.
Bodies of 40 people, out of 46 killed in fire at the building, were identified ill time.
Thirty-three of the bodies had been handed over to their respective family members from Dhaka Medical College Hospital and Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn & Plastic Surgery till 10:00am Friday, Mostafa Abdullah Al Noor, (Nezarat) Deputy Collector (NDC) in Dhaka, told reporters.
According to Noor, among the six unidentified bodies, five were not claimed by anybody, and one was badly burnt beyond recognition, and DNA test would be required for identification.
Following his visit to the spot, Health Minister Samanta Lal Sen said none of the 13 critically injured--11 undergoing treatment at the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery and two at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH)- were out of danger by then.
He expressed concern for the hospitalised victims, noting that all of them suffered from burns and respiratory damage, putting them in critical condition,
The newly appointed health minister said the inhalation of carbon-monoxide gas from the fire was the cause of the deaths and injuries.
Of the 40 victims identified, names of 25 victims have so far been disclosed.
The victims are: Fauzia Afrin Ria, 22, of Cumilla; Ataur Rahman Shamim, 63, of Moulvibazar; Popy Roy, 33, daughter of Prannath Roy of Dhaka; Sompurna Poddar, 11, daughter of Shipon Poddar; Ashraful Islam Asif, 25, of Brahmanbaria; Nazia Akhter, 31, of Dhaka; Arhan Mostafa Ahmed, 6, son of Ashik of Dhaka; Nurul Islam, 32, of Bangshal, Dhaka; Pompa Saha, 46, of Cumilla; Md Shanto Hossain, 23, of Narayanganj; Maisha Kabir Mahi, 21, of AGB Colony, Dhaka; Mehera Kabir Dola, 29, of AGB Colony, Dhaka; Md Jihad, 22, of Madaripur; Md Kamrul Hasan Habib Roki, 20, of Jashore; Jonnatin Tajri, 23, of Cumilla; Didarul Haque, 23, of Bhola; Mehedi Hasan, 27, of Tangail; Nusrat Jahan Shimu, 19, of Cumilla; Syeda Fatematuz Zohura, 16, of Moghbazar, Dhaka; Syed Abdullah, 8, son of Syed Mubarak of Moghbazar, Dhaka; Sopna Akhter, 40, Moghbazar, Dhaka; Jarin Tasnim Priyoti, 20, of Munshiganj; Syed Mobarak, 48, an expatriate, resident of Hatirjheel, Dhaka; Rubi Roy, 48, of Habiganj, and Priyanka Roy, 18, of Habiganj; Jewel, 30.
State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief Muhibur Rahman said Tk 25,000 each would be given to the deceased's families and Tk15,000 would be given to the injured.
According to RAJUK, Hamida Khatun Gong and Amin Mohammad Group took the approval for the building on 7.5-katha land. The structure has approval for a seven-storey commercial building.
The building got its approval with only one staircase, according to RAJUK.
"They are utilising spaces on each floor as restaurants with the expectation of higher profits, which is a violation of the law," said the RAJUK planner.
However, according to the Fire Prevention and Fire Fighting Act, a building exceeding six stories must have fire exits, and two staircases should be maintained for safety.
The fire service formed a five-member probe committee over the incident on Thursday night. The committee, headed by Lt Col Tajul Islam Chowdhury, was formed to find the cause of the fire, according to a notification sent to the media by Fire Service and Civil Defence.
Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) has initiated a comprehensive investigation into the catastrophic fire incident.
In response to the disaster, a seven-member committee led by a Rajuk member (development control) was formed. It consists of key officials including the Rajuk chief engineer (implementation), chief town planner, chief town architect, and directors of development control and zone-6. The panel is tasked with examining any potential faults in the building's design and approval process.
Experts made a fervent call for the authorities to look into many other jerrybuilt structures, including high-rises and takeaways, in the capital city, Dhaka.
The infernal fire has draw attention of international media.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed concern over the fire incident.
Meanwhile, a restaurant manager and three employees were arrested over the fire incident while probe went on to determine responsibility.
Police on Friday arrested a manager of Kacchi Bhai Restaurant and two owners of Chumuk Restaurant in connection with the fire incident at a building on Bailey Road in the capital that took lives of 46 people and injured many.
They are Kacchi Bhai Restaurant's Baily Road branch manager Jainuddin Jisan and Chumuk Restaurant's owners Anwarul Haque and Shafiqur Rahman.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police Additional Commissioner (Crime and Operations) Dr Kh Mahid Uddin said this at a press briefing at the DMP's media centre in the city on Friday evening.
He further said, "Those who are responsible, including the building owners, will be brought to book."
The press briefing also informed that police is preparing to file a case as a plaintiff on charge of negligent homicide in the incident.
A devastating fire took place at a multi-storey building at Bailey Road in the city on Thursday night, leaving 46 people dead and several others seriously injured.