Fighter jet crashes into school building: Toll rises to 32, many in critical condition

The death toll from the Bangladesh Air Force fighter jet crash into a building of Milestone School and College in the capital’s Uttara has risen to 32. Many of those admitted to hospitals with burn injuries remain in critical condition.

A child passed away around 12:45 am on Wednesday at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, raising the death toll to 32.

The Inter-Services Public Relations Directorate (ISPR) and the health ministry confirmed this information.

The ISPR on Tuesday afternoon said that as of 12:00 pm that day, they had received information of 31 deaths and at least 165 injuries. The health ministry later stated that at least 40 people were critically injured.

There has been some confusion over the death toll, with slight discrepancies between figures provided by the ISPR, the health ministry, and various hospitals. Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Professor Sayedur Rahman also spoke about the discrepancy in data between the ISPR and the health ministry.

On Monday night, around 2:00 am, the ISPR reported 20 deaths. However, physicians at the burn institute later confirmed to Prothom Alo two more deaths that night, one at 10:30 pm and another at midnight.

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) published an updated list around 12:30 pm Tuesday, confirming 27 deaths, including 23 children.

The list also noted that 20 bodies had been handed over to families, while six unidentified bodies remained in the morgue of the Combined Military Hospital (CMH).

Apart from this, the body of Flight Lieutenant Toukir Islam, the pilot of the crashed aircraft, has been buried in Rajshahi.

Around 3:00 pm on Tuesday, health adviser Nurjahan Begum informed newspersons at the burn institute that the death toll had reached 29. However, as of 12:30 am on Wednesday, a complete official list had still not been released by the DGHS on its website.

Speaking to Prothom Alo around 12:45 am Wednesday, burn institute’s resident surgeon Shawon Bin Rahman said that a nine-year-old child, Nafi, who had sustained 95 per cent burns, had died in the ICU.

Professor Sayedur Rahman answered to questions of newspersons about the discrepancy in data between the ISPR and the health ministry.

He told the media at the burn institute that ISPR had included data from Lubana Hospital, which claims that families of two brought them dead at the hospital but that has not been included in their registrar book. The names of those two deceased did not appear in the documents of other hospitals as well.

According to Sayedur Rahman, “Another reason for this mismatch is that one body had been moved from Uttara Adhunik Medical College Hospital to CMH. This has created further inconsistencies in the numbers. We said 15 but we have been confirmed before arriving here that the bodies of all 15 are at CMH. However, the ISPR information mentioned about 16 there. It will take some time to clarify these discrepancies.”

Speaking about the casualties, a teacher at Milestone School and College’s Diabari branch told Prothom Alo on Tuesday night that they are still gathering data on injured and missing students.

Conflicting figures from different authorities have created confusion and mistrust. Considering the magnitude of the incident, some students of the institution also claim the real death toll could be higher. Rumors of deaths of hundreds of students and hiding the bodies were widely circulated on social media.

These rumors fueled Tuesday’s student protests at Milestone College, where one of the students’ six key demands was the announcement of accurate lists of the deceased and injured.

In response, the government announced it would accept the students’ demands. Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus declared that graves for the deceased would be allocated in the Uttara Sector-12 city corporation cemetery near the school, which would later be preserved in their memory.

Sources involved in rescue operations said many of the victims’ bodies were severely burned, some beyond recognition, which initially delayed identification.

Professor Sayedur Rahman informed the media that as of Tuesday morning, 20 bodies had been handed over to families.

According to the list the ISPR provided, a total of 165 sustained injuries in the incident. Of the injured, eight are receiving treatment at Kuwait-Bangladesh Friendship Hospital, 46 at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, three at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, 28 at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH), 13 at Lubana General Hospital, 60 at Uttara Adhunik Medical College Hospital, one at Uttara Crescent Hospital, one at Shaheed Mansur Ali Medical College Hospital, two at United Hospital, and three at Kurmitola General Hospital.

A large number of the injured are burn victims. Of them, those who have suffered burns over 50 per cent of their bodies or sustained damage to their respiratory tract due to inhalation of fire or smoke are in critical condition, relevant sources said.

Sources at the health ministry stated that among those admitted to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, two patients have been moved to cabins. However, at least 10 patients in the High Dependency Unit (HDU) are in critical condition, and 30 others are in serious condition.

Medical sources involved in the treatment process said that specialist physicians from across the country have been brought in to support the treatment efforts. Paediatric specialists have been specially assigned to the care of injured children. The government has also announced that specialist physicians from Singapore will be brought in to assist in treating the injured.

Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Professor Sayedur Rahman told newspersons on Tuesday, “There is an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) between this hospital (the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery) and Singapore General Hospital. We’ve contacted them and sent them case reports. One senior consultant and two nurses from there will arrive tonight.”

Speaking about the situation, Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain told Prothom Alo yesterday afternoon that China, India, and Japan have offered emergency medical assistance for the injured. These three countries have requested that Bangladesh quickly inform them of the specific types of support required for the treatment of the victims.

The family members and relatives were also seen on Tuesday looking for the missing persons. A person, Aminul Islam Johnny, was looking for his missing wife Lamia Akter Sonia, showing a photograph of the NID of his wife at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery around 10:00 am. Their daughter Asmaul Husna Zaira is a third grader at Milestone School and College.

Speaking to Prothom Alo in a tearful voice in front of the burn institute’s morgue, Aminul said, “Lamia went to Milestone School to pick up their daughter Zaira around 12:30 pm on Monday. That was when the plane crashed. Since then, they have not been able to find her.”

“I’ve searched every hospital in Uttara but still haven’t found her. She’s not in the burn unit either. I don’t know where else to look. I don’t even know how to explain this to our son,” Aminul continued.

A training fighter jet of Bangladesh Air Force crashed into a building of Milestone School and College on Monday. On Tuesday, a one-day state mourning was observed commemorating the casualties in the incident.