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Two more firefighters die at hospitals in Dhaka, Ctg

Admin — Sun, 12 Jun 2022 17:53:04 +0000

Two more firefighters, who sustained injuries in a fire at BM Inland Container Depot at Sitakunda in Chattogram on June 4, died at Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka and Parkview Hospital in Chattogram on Sunday.
The deceased were identified as Md Nurul Kader, 22, son of AKM Faizur Rahman of Checuria of Banshkhali area in Chattogram, and Gausul Azam, 22.
Of them, Gausul was on life-support at the intensive care unit of Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery while Nurul Kader was undergoing treatment at the ICU of Parkview Hospital in Chattogram.
With these, the death toll in the fire incident reached 44; and of the deceased, 11 were firefighters.
Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery residential surgeon SM Ayub Hossain said that Gausul suffered 70 per cent burns and he died from his injures at about 4:30am.
Another firefighter, Robin Miah, 22, and a container driver, Nazrul Islam Mandal, 38, were undergoing treatment at the ICU of the hospital, the doctor said.
Chattogram civil surgeon Elias Chowdhury told New Age that Nurul Kader was undergoing treatment at the ICU of Parkview Hospital. He died from his injuries at about 1:30pm.
The fire and subsequent blasts at the container depot left at least 48 people dead and over 200 people wounded.
The police on June 8 filed a case against eight employees of the depot three days after the fire.
Sitakunda police sub-inspector Ashraf Siddique lodged the case following instructions of high officials, said police officials.
The owners of the depot and Al Razi Chemical Complex Limited were spared in the case.

– With New Age input

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7 DVR seized from BM container depot in Ctg

Admin — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 17:29:45 +0000

The Criminal Investigation Department today (June 11, 2022) seized the digital video recorder (DVR) —that stores CCTV footage on a hard disk –from BM Container Depot Limited where a devastating fire broke out, killing 45 people.
The BM Container at Sitakunda upazila of Chattogram was monitored with 118 CCTV cameras. The data from these cameras were stored on seven digital video recorders (DVRs) machines, reports our Chattogram staff correspondent quoting sources at Chattogram CID.
An investigation team led by CID Inspector Mohammad Sharif visited the damaged IT room inside the container depot this morning. The entire container depot’s IT system and CCTV cameras were controlled from that office, said the sources.
The IT room of the depot was completely destroyed due to the explosion.
The CID team confiscated the DVR machines that stored the CCTV data. It is not sure whether any information could be found from the DVR machines, said a CID official.
When contacted, Shanewaz Khaled, superintendent of police at CID Chattogram, said Sitakunda Police Station was investigating the incident while the CID was assisting them in the investigation.
As part of the investigation, a team from CID went to the depot and collected some digital samples and evidence from the spot, he said, adding, that those will be analysed and tested for the sake of investigation.
Meanwhile, debris removal and clearing work was going on inside the container depot. Depot authorities were removing those with their manpower and equipment.
Authorities said it will take some time to remove the debris and make it fully operational. Representatives of clearing and forwarding (C&F) and shipping companies were crowding outside the depot.
When contacted, Maj (retd) Shamsul Haider Siddique, general manager of BM Container Depot, said all the footage from 118 cameras have been destroyed due to the blast.
“We have tried to recover the evidence as those are very vital to know the reason for the origin of fire but could not,” he said, adding, “The team from CID seized the DVR machines today. If they could recover some evidence from the machines, it would be helpful for investigation.”
Shamsul said the cheque of compensation that the company pledged for the deceased and injured people in the blast would be distributed on Tuesday through the deputy commissioner of Chattogram.
Meanwhile, a total of 98 injured people in the blast were undergoing treatment in different hospitals in Dhaka and Chattogram, according to sources in Chattogram Civil Surgeon Office.

– With The Daily Star input

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After 86 hours, fire finally doused in Ctg depot: Army

Admin — Wed, 08 Jun 2022 13:48:44 +0000

After 86 hours, the devastating fire at BM Container Depot in Chattogram’s Sitakunda has finally been doused, said Lt Col Ariful Islam, commander of the 18th Brigade of Bangladesh Army’s 24th Infantry Division.
He confirmed the development to journalists today (June 8, 2022). The fire was completely extinguished around 12pm. There are no flames anywhere in the depot, Lt Col Ariful said.
The fire came under control 60 hours after it broke out, the Army official said yesterday (June 7, 2022) noon.
“It’s just the smoke coming out. As soon as water hits the garment products in the containers, smoke is coming out. We visited the entire depot and did not find any more bodies,” he said.
“You saw a shed and many containers burnt down in the depot. Using cranes, we’re removing those. It’s impossible to say right now that if there’s anything else underneath it,” he added.
“There were around 4,400 containers in the depot. Initially, we came to know that 400 containers were destroyed,” he also said.
“Army personnel joined in fire extinguishing operations since Sunday morning. The fire was brought below the danger level in 24 hours and brought under control in 48 hours,” Lt Col Ariful said.

– With The Daily Star input

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60 hours later, Ctg depot fire finally under control, says army

Admin — Tue, 07 Jun 2022 13:41:38 +0000

After 60 hours, the Bangladesh Army claimed to have brought the deadly fire at Sitakunda BM Container Depot under control.
“We were able to put out the fire, and there is no danger of it happening again. We’ve marked the hazardous area and are working to prevent further damage and contamination, said the commanding officer of the 18-Bir contingent, Lt Col Ariful Islam, reports our staff correspondent.
“Inside the depot, a few containers are still strewn about. We don’t know how many containers contained the chemicals because related documents were burned and officials were injured,” he said.
So far, he said, no new dead bodies have been found inside the depot, but smoke and fire have been seen in various locations throughout the facility.

– With The Daily Star input

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Families gather in front of CMCH in search of missing victims

Admin — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 10:23:05 +0000

Most of the bodies remain unidentified
News Desk : dhakamirror.com
Family members of unidentified victims during a fire and massive explosion at privately-run inland container depot, BM Container Depot, at Sitakunda on the outskirts of the country’s port city Chattogram on Saturday night gathered in front of Chattogram Medical College Hospital on Monday morning.
While visiting the hospital on Monday morning, it was seen that the family members were looking for their relatives at the CMCH morgue. To identify the dead body the family members had to provide DNA sample to the hospital.
19-year-old Reshmi Begum came to CMCH along with her three-month-old baby from Fatikchhari in Chattogram to search for her husband Md Shahjahan who remained missing after the fire incident at BM Container Depot.
Md Shahjahan was a covered van driver and he was at the BM Container Depot during the fire and massive explosion on Saturday night.
Reshmi Begum told New Age that ‘he called me in the evening and informed me that he went to BM Container Depot to unload goods. When we learnt that there was a fire incident, I immediately called him but failed to contact him.’
Like Reshmi Begum, the family members of other victims who were at the depot during the fire gathered in front of CMCH to identify the victims.
Hemayet Ullah came from Dhaka in search of his son Md Mainuddin, 22, who remained missing since Saturday night.
Mainuddin was a lorry driver and went to the depot with goods, Hemayet Ullah told New Age.
Another transport worker Md Sakib, 19, remained missing since Saturday night. His elder brother Abdul Hannan came to CMCH from Subarnachar of Noakhali in search of his brother.
‘My brother called me during the fire. He informed me that there was a fire in a container. He was watching the fire incident and capturing videos. We requested him to leave but he didn’t care,’ Abdul Hannan told New Age.
However, authorities were collecting DNA samples to identify the victims. The family members were waiting in a queue to provide DNA samples.
Chattogram range deputy inspector general Md Anwar Hossain on Monday morning at CMCH said that they were collecting DNA samples to identify the victims.
However, a total of 22 bodies were handed over to their family members till Monday 10:30am, assistant commissioner Pratik Dutta of Chattogram district administration told New Age.
However, the authorities could identify the 24 bodies out of 49 till Monday morning while the rest of the bodies remained unidentified.
Authorities couldn’t identify the bodies as the faces of most of the bodies were distorted, said officials.
At least 49 people including nine firefighters were killed and over 200 people were injured in an explosion as a fire broke out in a privately-run inland container depot at Sitakunda in Bangladesh’s southeast district of Chattogram on the night following Saturday.
The fire originated at a container, loaded with hydrogen peroxide, at about 9:30pm on Saturday and it experienced a massive explosion at about 10:10pm. Later, the fire spread to the other containers.
There were 33 containers which were filled with hydrogen peroxide and were brought to the BM Container Depot on June 1 and June 2.
The 33 containers of hydrogen peroxide chemical were owned by Al Razi Chemical Complex Limited, a sister concern of Smart Group of Industries which is also the owner of BM Container Depot, said an official.
Mujibur Rahman, the editor of Chattogram local daily Purbodesh and treasurer of Chattogram south district Awami League, is the owner of Al Razi Chemical Complex Limited and BM Container Depot.
BM Container Depot, a Dutch-Bangladeshi joint venture, was set up as an inland container depot that has been operating since May 2011, one of 19 such ICDs in Chattogram.
The chairman of the depot is Dutch businessman Bert Pronk, who has other investments too in Bangladesh, while the managing director is Mustafizur Rahman of the Smart Group of Industries.

– With New Age input

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At least 49 killed, over 200 injured in Ctg container depot fire

Admin — Sun, 05 Jun 2022 08:28:15 +0000

News Desk : dhakamirror.com
At least 49 people were killed and over 200 people were injured in an explosion as a fire broke out in a privately-run inland container depot at Sitakunda in Bangladesh’s southeast district of Chattogram at the night following Saturday.
Officials said that the victims in the fire at BM Container Depot included policemen and fire service personnel and the victims were rushed to different hospitals in Sitakunda and Chattogram city.
Chattogram district civil surgeon Md Elias Chowdhury said that the death toll had risen to 49 until 5:45pm on Sunday.
Chattogram Divisional Commissioner Md Ashraf Uddin said that over 200 injured people were now under treatment at different hospitals.
Of the injured ones, 164 people are now under treatment in Chattogram Medical College Hospital and 35 others are now undergoing treatment in Park View Hospital.
Fire Service and Civil Defence officials said that the deceased ones included eight of their firefighters. Besides, 15 other fire service personnel were undergoing treatment at Combined Military Hospital in Chattogram, they said.
Mohammad Alauddin, an assistant sub-inspector at Chattogram Medical College Hospital police outpost, said that all the bodies were kept at CMCH morgue.
Chattogram’s civil surgeon Elias Chowdhury said that many of the injured had their hand or leg severed.
One of the deceased, Muminul Hoque, 24, son of Faridul Alam of Chanua under Banshkhai upazila in Chattogram, was a computer operator of the BM Container Depot while another victim is Md Mohiuddin, 22, son of Mahmudur Rahman, of Napora of Banshkhali.
Ascertaining identities of other ones was under process, officials said.
Injured cops who are now undergoing treatment at CMCH are Shahidul, 50, Shohag, 24, Imrul, 28, Aung San Suchi, 24, Shohag, 22, of Industrial Police and Md Belal, Md Mizan, 22, Md Tuhin, Md Motahar of Sitakunda police station, assistant sub-inspector Mohammad Alauddin Talukder of CMCH police outpost said.
CMCH officials said that many of the injured ones were undergoing treatment at the hospital in critical condition.
They said that they had to send a number of patients who needed intensive care unit support to other hospitals after filling up all the ICU beds with critically injured patients.
The fire broke out at about 9:30pm in some containers in the depot, said officials.
Chattogram fire service and civil defense control room officials said that 25 firefighting units rushed to the spot and were working to douse the fire.
As the fire could not be brought under control until Sunday morning, Bangladesh Army personnel, responding to the call of civil administration, joined their hands to control the fire, said the Chattogram divisional commissioner.
Md Anisur Rahman, deputy director of Chattogram fire service and civil defense, told New Age that they were working to douse the fire and suspected that the fire became devastating due to chemicals kept stored in the container depot.
He said that they could bring the fire under control on Sunday morning.
Witnesses said that the fire spread to the adjacent containers within a few minutes of beginning the fire and local people gathered there to assist the fire-fighters and the police to douse the fire.
At about 10:15pm on Saturday, a container exploded with a big bang and scores of people, including the policemen and fire service officials, working there became injured, said Mohammad Shoaib who witnessed the fire and the explosion.
Officials said that the explosion was heard within a radius of about 4 kilometres from the spot and glasses of many nearby houses broke down due the huge sound.
A series of small explosions could be heard later and, since then, the fire went out of control, officials and witnesses said.
The area became heavy due to the cry of the victims and the police, fire service personnel and the vehicles that had been passing by the area began to rush the victims to different private and public hospitals in Sitakundu and Chattogram city.
CMCH received most of the victims.
The Chattogram district civil surgeon Dr Ilias Chowdhury, talking to reporters at the CMCH at about 12:45am on Sunday, urged the doctors and nurses in Chattogram city to rush to CMCH for providing treatment and care to the injured ones as the hospital’s burn unit, orthopaedic unit and emergency department had filled up with the injured victims.
He urged the volunteers to rush to the hospital to provide blood for the patients and government ambulances and private ambulance service providers to rush to the fire spot to bring the injured victims to hospitals.
+The doctors and nurses had to give treatment to the patients keeping on temporary beds on floors of the departments at CMCH.
Responding to the call of the civil surgeon, a good number of doctors, nurses and volunteers rushed to CMCH.
Red Crescent Society, Gauchhia Committee Bangladesh, Sandhani and CMCH students rushed to CMCH to work as volunteers and to provide blood.
A number of the patients received by the CMCH and the Park View Hospital had lost their hands and legs in the explosion.
BM Container Depot director Mujibur Rahman told New Age that they were yet to ascertain the cause of the fire. ‘However, we suspected that the fire originated from the container.’
‘We are arranging treatment for the injured ones and we will bear the full cost of treatment of the victims. Those who have suffered casualties in the accident will be given maximum compensation. Besides, the families of all the victims will be taken care of,’ he said.
BM Container Depot, a Dutch-Bangladeshi joint venture, was set up as an inland container depot that is operating since May 2011, one of 19 such ICDs in Chattogram.
The chairman of the depot is Dutch businessman Bert Pronk, who has other investments too in Bangladesh, while the managing director is Mustafizur Rahman of the Smart Group of Industries.

– With New Age input

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