NARAYANGANJ, Bangladesh : At least 63 students were hospitalised after a fire broke out at a residential madrasa in Narayanganj district early Tuesday, with three students in critical condition receiving intensive care, officials said.
The fire erupted at around 2am at Jamia Ashrafia Madrasa in the Signboard area of Fatullah, sending thick smoke through the five-storey building and triggering panic among students living there.
The blaze originated on the building’s second floor, where the library and administrative offices are located, according to fire service officials and local sources. Dense smoke spread rapidly through the premises, leaving several students struggling to breathe.
Firefighters and local residents rescued the affected students and took them to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka for treatment.
Dr Sultan Mahmud Shikder, a resident physician at the institute’s emergency department, said 63 students had been admitted. Three were in critical condition and had been transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU). One patient was receiving mechanical ventilation, he added.
Four Buses Set Ablaze, Explosions Reported at Seven Locations in Dhaka and Beyond
The critically ill students were identified as Yousuf, 18, Khairul, 22, and Zubayer, 18.
Abdullah Al Arefin, deputy assistant director of Narayanganj Fire Service and Civil Defence, said the department received the alert at 1:55am. Five firefighting units from the Kanchpur Modern and Shibu Market fire stations reached the scene at approximately 2:05am.
The firefighters brought the blaze under control by 2:30am, after about 30 minutes of operations.
A preliminary assessment suggests that an electrical short circuit may have triggered the fire. However, the cause has not yet been established through a formal investigation.
The fire destroyed property and equipment worth an estimated Tk 1.5 million (15 lakh), primarily in the madrasa’s library and office rooms.
Authorities have yet to provide further details about the circumstances surrounding the incident.
COMMENTS