Fire guts around 100 shanties in Bangladesh’s capital

DHAKA, Bangladesh

A devastating fire in a slum located in an industrial area of Bangladesh’s capital gutted nearly 100 shanties Monday night, according to eyewitnesses and local residents.

The fire erupted in the Tejgaon area of Dhaka around 7.50 p.m. local time (1350GMT) and was brought under control after nearly three hours of hectic efforts by 11 units of the Fire Service and Civil Defense Force while a unit of the Bangladesh Air Force later joined the rescue operations.

“There are over 200 shanties here in this slum, and it seems to me that nearly 100 of them have been burnt to ashes,” Mohammad Abul Bashar, a security guard at a building adjacent to the slum, told Anadolu.

An official at the headquarters of the Fire Service said by phone, however, that without an investigation after fully extinguishing the fire, they could not provide any figures on the damage.

“Our team is still working there, and until now, we have not had any reports of casualties or the reason behind the cause of the fire,” he added.

Eyewitnesses and locals who joined the rescue operations told Anadolu that due to the narrow pathways to the slum and congested environment, the Fire Service’s rescue vehicle could not reach the spot and they carried water through pipelines crossing a long way.

“I saw a huge blaze, and shortly after the incident, the Fire Service’s team came but could not reach here quickly. Due to the gathering of curious people across the narrow ways, the rescue operations were also slowed,” said Mohammad Rashed, a local resident.

Several incidents of fires have been reported in the last month in various urban areas of the country, revealing the weak structures and management of the urbanization process in the country, according to experts.