Dhaka: A massive pre-dawn fire gutted thousands of shops at a shopping centre here on Saturday, forcing the fire service to seek the help of the military, paramilitary as well as police to extinguish the blaze, the second such incident in Bangladesh’s capital this month.
The fire, which raged a few days after a popular clothing market was partially destroyed, began on the second floor of New SuperMarket, a shopping centre between the popular Newmarket and Dhaka College, around 5.45 am and quickly spread to other floors, Newmarket Police Station chief Shafiqul Gani Sabu, was quoted as saying by news portal bdnews24.com.
Fire service officials said there were no reports of deaths in the tragedy as the fire erupted before shops opened for the day.
The officials said 34 people, including 15 firefighters and rescue workers alongside the shop owners, fell sick as they inhaled black smoke while the rescue campaign was underway. The injured were rushed to specialised Sheikh Hasina Burn Institute and Dhaka Medical College Hospital where doctors said the conditions of at least two of them were “critical”.
“The fire has largely come under control within three hours after it broke out...
We are carrying out the rescue campaign... our priority is to save the shops as much as possible,” fire service chief Brigadier General Mohammad Moinuddin said. Moinuddin, however, noted that flammable objects were there in some shops as consumer items which quickened the spread of the fire in the three-storey market and gutted over 100 shops.