In an incident of a fire outbreak at Khaja Tower, a multi-story building in Mahakhali, Dhaka, two more individuals have lost their lives. With this, the death toll in this incident has risen to three.
The deceased have been identified as Mohammad Rafiqul Islam (63) and Aklima Rahman (31). Rafiqul was an engineer by profession and worked as a project coordinator at a company called Safe Power Tech. The company’s office was located on the 13th floor of Khaja Tower. Aklima worked at a call center on the ninth floor of another building.
Rafiqul was recovered from the building and taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital around midnight, where he was pronounced dead by doctors. Aklima was brought to Dhaka Medical in an unconscious state around 1 AM. Both of their bodies have been kept at the morgue of Dhaka Medical College, as confirmed by the Medical Police Inspector Bachchu Mia.
Earlier in the evening, another casualty named Hasna Hena (27) lost her life in the same incident. Hasna Hena worked as a Sales Incharge at Race Online Limited, an internet service provider.
It is reported that the fire started on the 14th floor of the building at around 5 PM. Fire service personnel, along with members of the armed forces, navy, air force, police, RAB, and Ansar, have been actively engaged in the rescue operation. They are continuously pouring water on the building to control the fire.
Brigadier General Md. Main Uddin, the Director General of Fire Service and Civil Defence, mentioned during a press conference at the incident site around midnight that even though they have gained control over the fire, it will take more time to completely extinguish it. He also stated that they have rescued ten people, including three women, from the building.
The source at the Fire Service mentioned that the exact origin of the fire has not been confirmed yet but it is suspected to have started from an electrical short circuit.
Eyewitnesses reported that after the fire broke out, people on various floors of the building tried to escape in various ways. Some used the roof of adjacent buildings, while others tried to descend from the upper floors using ropes.
Salman Hossain, who was present during the incident, stated, “When I tried to descend using a rope from the fifth floor (lift floor-4), I saw flames raging below. That very fire had spread throughout the building.”
According to Dhaka Medical College sources, four individuals affected by the Mahakhali incident have been admitted with respiratory distress to the Sheikh Hasina National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute.
