Eight die as fire breaks out at Chattogram slum

Eight people have died after a fire broke out at a slum in Chattogram’s Chaktai.

The blaze began early on Saturday morning in the slum near the Bhera Market area and gutted nearly 200 homes, said Chattogram Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Elius Hossain.

Chattogram Fire Service Deputy Assistant Director Jashim Uddin said that fire service units arrived at the scene around 3:30 am after receiving reports of the fire.

Ten fire trucks from four fire service units finally managed to put out the blaze at 4:15 am.

DC Hossain told reporters at the scene that fire service personnel have recovered the bodies of eight people from the debris.

Seven of the dead have been identified as Rahima Akhtar, 55, her two daughters Nazma, 16, and Nasrin, 5, her son Zakir, 10, Aysha Akhtar, 35, and her nephew Shohag, and a woman named Hasina.

The district administration has announced it will provide Tk 20,000 for the burial services of the dead.

The district administration has also formed a four-member committee led by the additional district magistrate to investigate the cause of the fire.

According to Bakalia Police OC Pranab Chowdhury, the slum was built illegally on government land next to the Bhera Market by the Karnaphuli’s Rajakhali canal.

According to a victim named Hasina Begum, five locals, including individuals named Sattar, Farid and Helal, collected rent from the slum residents. Different parts of the slum were known under names such as the Sattar Colony and the Farid Colony, she said.