Fire service boss sees ‘risks of disaster’ if a huge earthquake strikes Dhaka

He says the emergency responders are well trained and have modern equipment for rescue operations, but reaching places like Old Dhaka will be challenging

The buildings in Old Dhaka’s North South Road are not spaced out, making it difficult to identify them separately. Photo: Mahmud Zaman Ovi

Unplanned urbanisation has put densely populated places like Old Dhaka at “true risk of a disaster” in case of a big earthquake like the ones that have killed more than 11,000 people in Turkey and Syria, the head of the fire service has said.

Brig Gen Main Uddin, director general of the Fire Service and Civil Defence, says the emergency responders in Bangladesh are well trained and have modern equipment for rescue operations, but reaching places like Old Dhaka will be challenging.

He faced questions from journalists on Wednesday about such a risk at a press conference on Bangladesh’s support for Turkey in the rescue operation as an unknown number of victims were still trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings.

Tens of thousands of people were injured or left homeless in adverse winter weather in the aftermath of the quakes.

Main Uddin said many people are concerned that such an earthquake can hit Dhaka city at any time.

“We’re working in various ways to deal with such disasters with well trained manpower and modern equipment,” the fire service DG said.

“But it’s still truly risky for us. We may have trained manpower, and bought equipment, but will we be able to reach places like Old Dhaka?”

"Another thing we need to keep in mind is that we have an underground system for sewage and gas connections along with overhead electricity lines. What’ll happen when there is an earthquake?”

“Will today’s utility systems be a threat to our lives tomorrow?”

The utility lines should have safety features that automatically shut off the system to avoid fire incidents in case of a shock,” said Main Uddin.