None of the 12 injured are out of danger: Health minister

The death toll from the fire at a multi-storied building in the capital’s Bailey Road rose to 46 on Friday. Some 10 persons, who sustained injuries in the fire, are undergoing treatment at the Sheikh Hasina National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute and two are admitted at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).

Health minister Samanta Lal Sen confirmed this to newspersons while visiting the Sheikh Hasina National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute Friday morning. He said none of the 12 injured are out of danger yet.

The health minister said, “So far, 46 casualties have been reported. Some 10 of the injured were admitted to the Sheikh Hasina National Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit. The people trapped in the building died of carbon monoxide poisoning. The carbon monoxide cannot escape from a confined space. As a result, people trapped in that space inhale it. It happened to every one of the victims. Those who inhaled it more have died. None of those who survived are out of danger.”

The health minister further said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina phoned him at 6:45 am this morning. She told the health minister that the government would do everything to ensure treatment of the injured persons.

The building caught fire at around 9:45 pm Thursday. After dousing the fire the injured were taken to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) and Sheikh Hasina National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute.

The building which caught fire was seven-storied. There is a restaurant named ‘Kachchi Bhai’ on the second floor of the building. There were several other restaurants on the upper floors of the building. There was also a clothing store on the third floor. The eateries get crowded from the evening every day. Many people go there with their families.

According to eyewitnesses, the fire broke out on the first and second floor and spread upward later. Within a few minutes the members of the Fire Service and Civil Defence reached the spot and started dousing the fire.

At the same time, they were also operating a rescue operation using a crane to bring down the people, who resorted to the roof of the seven-storied building. Some 13 units of the fire service brought the fire under control at around 11:50 pm.