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The Fire Service has been unable to immediately confirm the cause of the fire at the Secretariat, the nerve centre of the Bangladesh administration, even though the blaze itself has been brought under control after five hours.
Fire Service Director General Jahed Kamal said that it is believed the fire could have started from an electrical short circuit, reports bdnews24.com.
In a briefing at 6:45am on Thursday, he said: “The cause of the fire may have been some interior decoration. When the fire started in one spot, it could be the case that it spread everywhere through the power line.”
“But we have yet to establish an initial cause. Once the fire is extinguished, we will search the entire area and will be able to let you know after that.”
Jahed said: “As far as we know, the fire was seen in three places at once. When there is sparking, or a short circuit on a power line, that kind of thing can happen. But we cannot say that it is confirmed until we complete our investigation.”
“It could have happened, but I am not saying that it did happen. If there was a short circuit situation. If it was all on one line, it could happen.”
Talha Bin Jashim, an official with the Fire Service, said a fire was reported in Building No. 7 of the Secretariat at 1:52pm. Firefighters rushed to the spot within two minutes and began efforts to control the blaze.
Initially, eight units were dispatched to the scene and another 11 joined the firefighting efforts later.
During the operation, firefighter Md Sohanur Zaman Nayan was crossing the road in an attempt to connect a water pipe when he was rammed by a truck and critically injured. The truck then rushed off. He later died in the hospital.
Fire Service chief Jahed held a press briefing when the fire was brought under control after five hours.
Asked whether he knew of any casualties in the fire, Jahed said that none had been confirmed so far.