7 houses gutted in Satkania

Seven houses have been gutted in fire in Chittagong’s Satkania Upazila.

The fire broke out in the late hours of Sunday at ‘Morfatla Moriccha’ village under Nolua Union.

Fire fighters suspect an electric short circuit could be the cause of the fire. But affected residents claim it was a premeditated arson attack.

Abul Hashem, whose house was burned down, told bdnews24.com, “Criminals set fire to the house from three sides. We have lost our valuables including cash in the fire.”

The fire was extinguished at around 4am, said Satkania Fire Station official Shahadat Hossain. The fire tenders could not reach the fire site on time as political agitators had put up obstructions on the roads.

He said short-circuit had caused the fire but the residents believe it was the work of arsonists but they could not pinpoint anyone.

District Assistant Superintendant of Police (Satkania Circle) AKM Imran Bhuiyan toldbdnews24.com, police were investigating the incident.