Nasrin Akter Mukta, 29, a teacher at an English-medium school in Savar, was among the 10 people killed in a devastating fire at Tuptup Restaurant & Resort in the Patuertek area near Inani Beach in Cox’s Bazar on Saturday morning.
The death of Nasrin, who dreamed of becoming an exemplary teacher and helping her students grow into good human beings, cast a pall of gloom over her family, colleagues and students.
The daughter of Mostafa Kamal, a retired Army warrant officer, Nasrin lived with her family in the Jalalabad area near the National Martyrs’ Memorial in Savar. She was the elder of two siblings.
Nasrin began her teaching career at Shopnobilash United School, an English-medium institution in Ashulia, Savar, after completing her education. In a short time, she became a much-loved teacher among her students.
She passed her Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination with distinction from Savar Cantonment Board School before completing her Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) at Savar Model College.
She later earned an honours degree from the National Institute of Textile Engineering and Research (NITER), affiliated with the University of Dhaka, and a master’s degree from Gono University.
Six years ago, she married her long-time partner, Faisal Dewan.
Nasrin loved travelling and had long dreamed of going on a trip with her friends. However, she had never found the right time and opportunity to fulfil that wish.
During the long Puja holidays, she finally set out on the long-awaited trip with two of her friends, Irin Jahan Meem and Ema.
But the trip ended in tragedy.
Around 7am on Saturday, a fire broke out at the resort near Patuertek Beach along Marine Drive. Nasrin’s two friends had stepped out of their room and were walking a short distance away when they heard a loud, explosive sound.
Moments later, they saw the resort engulfed in flames.
They repeatedly called out to Nasrin, hoping to reach their friend, but the fire had spread rapidly throughout the resort. Unable to reach her, the two watched helplessly as the flames consumed the building.
The incident left them in shock and disbelief.
Earlier, firefighters recovered 10 charred bodies from the resort after the fire broke out and spread rapidly.
Several people were also injured in the incident.
Talha Bin Zasim, station officer (media cell) at the Fire Service and Civil Defence headquarters, said the fire started at Tuptup Resort around 7am.
On information, firefighting units rushed to the spot and brought the blaze under control at around 8:15am, while firefighters continued their efforts to extinguish the fire around 11am.