Five Bangladeshis die in Abu Dhabi car fire, DNA testing initiated for identification

The bodies will be repatriated to Bangladesh after identification

Police have collected clothing samples for DNA testing to identify the bodies of five Bangladeshi nationals who died in a car fire after a road accident in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

The five expatriates from Dhaka's Dohar and Nawabganj Upazilas died in the car accident on Sunday.

The dead were identified as Ibadul Islam, 35, Md Rashed, 32, Md Rana, 30, Md Raju, 28 and Md Hira Mia, 22.

The bodies will be sent to Bangladesh soon after their identification, said Hazrat Sabbir Hossain, labour counsellor at the Bangladesh Embassy in Abu Dhabi.

"The car was completely gutted with five people inside. The bodies were completely burnt," he said.

“Samples of their clothing from their Ajman residence are being examined by police’s Forensic Department,” Sabbir said.

After identification, the embassy will seek approval for outpasses from the UAE prosecutors to send the bodies home, he added.

All of them were painters by profession and were staying in New Sanaya area No.2 of Ajman, according to Counsellor Sabbir.

"During a visit to a site with contractor Md Rana for painting work, their car caught fire. Their bodies have been taken to the Abu Dhabi Central Morgue for a post-mortem," he said.

"The car may have lost control and collided with the road barrier, or smoking inside the car could have led to contact with flammable substances, causing the fire."

The families of the victims are in mourning. The Bangladesh Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General in Dubai sent condolences to the families.