United News of Bangladesh

Thousands of residents in the capital’s Korail slum are struggling to come to terms with the aftermath of Tuesday’s devastating fire that reduced their homes and livelihoods to ashes.

A massive fire swept through the Korail slum on Tuesday evening (November 25), leaving hundreds of residents scrambling for safety and destroying everything in its path. The blaze, which intensified rapidly, gave many slum families no chance to salvage their belongings. Amid the chaos, Rozina, a resident, broke down in tears on the roadside after fleeing her burning home. “I couldn’t save a single thing,” she cried. “Everything we owned—earned through so much struggle—burned to ashes. Why would Allah show us something like this?” she said before collapsing into sobs. Read more: Recent fire incidents highlight safety challenges in Bangladesh: Experts Another resident, Kamal, was seen running with a television on his head and a gas cylinder clutched in his hand. “These are the only two things I have saved,” he said breathlessly. “Everything else turned to dust before my eyes.” Amid the flames, schoolboy Rafi and his mother Rahima were spotted rushing out of their home with a heavy sack and two large bags. With the family’s male members away, the mother and son struggled to save what they could. “Our house caught fire too,” Rahima said. “This is the second fire we’ve faced in six years. We managed to escape with some belongings last time, but this time even our costly furniture couldn’t be saved.” Meanwhile, firefighters faced severe challenges in controlling the blaze due to an acute shortage of water. Water-carrying vehicles were delayed as they became stuck in traffic, forcing authorities to resort to an emergency alternative. Three generators were installed beside a nearby waterbody to pump water directly to the scene. Multiple hoses were connected to disperse water toward the burning structures, as firefighters battled to bring the flames under control. Read more: Gazipur coil factory fire under control Despite their efforts, the extent of destruction is expected to be significant, with hundreds of families now homeless and waiting for relief. Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the fire or the full scale of the damage. Earlier, Talha Bin Jashim, duty officer at the Fire Service and Civil Defence (FSCD) headquarters media cell, said the fire originated from one of the shanties of the slum around 5:22pm. Fire Service and Civil Defence Director (Operations & Maintenance) Lt. Col. Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury said the flames are gradually decreasing. “We have strengthened our operations here, and nearly 20 units are now working at the scene,” he said. “We have managed to confine the fire. The next step is to identify the source of the blaze. We hope to share some good news within the next couple of hours. However, nothing can be said with certainty at this moment,” he added. Read more: Top Strategies to Enhance Fire Resilience in Dhaka City

On the night of May 18, a fire ripped through Shyamal Polli in the capital, burning down over a hundred of shanties and leaving behind nothing but smoke and sorrow. What once stood as a tightly knit community of tin-roofed shanties and modest dreams is now a desert of twisted metal and charred memories.  Fire breaks out at commercial building in Motijheel, brought under control UNB photographer Tahiat Nazifa Nur’s photos poignantly capture the struggle of the slum dwellers to survive.

A fire broke out in Jhilpar slum of Mirpur-12  in Dhaka on Monday (February 19, 2024) afternoon. Lima Khanam, duty officer of Fire Service and Civil Defence (FSCD) headquarters media cell, said the fire started from one of the shanties of the slum around 12:57 pm. Fire damages foam factory on Char Patharghata  On information, four fighting units rushed to the spot and were trying to bring the flame under control and then four more units joined them. The origin of the blaze is yet to be known, the duty officer said, adding that there is no report of casualties till 1:30 pm. Read more: 50 shanties gutted in Begunbari slum fire

A major fire swept through a slum in the Indian capital in the small hours of Saturday, claiming seven lives and destroying 60 thatched huts thus rendering hundreds homeless. The fire broke out at the slumtown in Delhi's Gokalpuri area around 12.45am when most of the residents were fast asleep, police and fire service officials said. READ: 12 buses set on fire in Faridpur  Smoke engulfed the area as the fire quickly spread and small cooking gas cylinders kept in the huts exploded. Within an hour, half of the slumtown was reduced to charred debris. Additional Deputy Commissioner of Delhi Police (northeast) Devesh Kumar Mahla told the local media that the cops were alerted about the blaze around 1am. "Immediately teams reached the spot with all rescue equipment. We also contacted the fire department that responded very well," he said. As many as 13 fire tenders were pressed into service within minutes but it took them three hours to contain the blaze. "We could douse the fire by 4am," he said. Fire officials said they found seven charred bodies at the site. "As many as 60 huts were completely gutted in the fire. A probe has been ordered into the fire," an official said. Local TV channels beamed footage of the slum dwellers searching through the ashes for their belongings. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter to express grief over the deaths. "Heard the sad news early in the morning. I will go to the spot and meet the affected people personally," he tweeted. READ: Fire in Ukhiya Rohingya camp again; shanties, learning centre gutted Fires in India's slum areas are common because of lax enforcement of inferno safety regulations.

Three teenagers died in a pre-dawn fire at a tin-roofed shanty at Chandalbuk under Turag Police Station on Tuesday. The deceased were identified as Md Jahangir,19, Ruma Aktar, 17, and Afrin 14. The fire broke out around 4:20 am at Suruj Mia’s house at Manik Slum in the city's Uttara area, said Shahjahan Sikder, Deputy Assistant Director Media cell of fire service and Civil Defence headquarters. Also read: Cox's Bazar Rohingya camp fire: Teams working 24/7 to regain normalcy On information, three units of firefighters rushed to the spot and managed to put out the flame at after one and a half hours of efforts at 5:40 am, he said “The fire might have originated from an electric short-circuit. Things will be clear after our investigation,” he said. Also read: Jhalakathi launch fire: Death toll rise to 49 The fire service official said the bodies were recovered from the spot and handed over to Sub Inspector Waziur Rahman.

At least 200 shanties  were gutted in a  fire at  a slum in the city's Ranavola area of Uttara sector-10 on Wednesday . Sources at the Fire Service and Civil Defence control room said the fire originated at the slum known as ‘Mustafa member balurmath basti’ around 12:20 pm and gutted the shanties. Also read:Dhaka Division saw 2,088 residential fires last year Five firefighting units rushed to the spot and brought the fire under control at around 1:35pm, said duty officer Lima Khanom. The fire was doused at around 2:45 pm. The fire originated from a kitchen of a shanty and then it spread quickly. However, the extent of damages caused by the fire could not be ascertained immediately and no casualty was reported, she added.

Around 150 shanties were burned down after a fire broke out in Maniknagar area of the capital on Sunday afternoon.

A fire at Jele Para slum adjacent to Beribadh under Chattaogram EPZ police station have gutted some shanties. 

Terming mysterious the fire incidents in three slums of the capital in 27 hours, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday alleged that the “ruling party-backed miscreants” did it in an effort to grab land.