Bangladesh: Over 40 Killed in Dhaka Shopping Mall Fire

Facts

• At least 45 people were killed and a dozen others injured after a massive fire broke out at a six-story shopping mall in Dhaka, Bangladesh's capital, late on Thursday.¹
• While an investigation has been launched to ascertain the cause of the blaze, Brigadier General Main Uddin, the head of the Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defense, said the fire could have originated from a gas leak or stove.²
• According to the country's Health Minister, Dr. Samanta Lal Sen, most of the people were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning after becoming stranded in an enclosed room.³
• The building — which housed restaurants, garment stores, and mobile phone shops — reportedly had gas cylinders on every floor and lacked an emergency exit.⁴
• The fire was under control after two hours, with firefighters rescuing 75 people. At least 40 injured people were reportedly being treated in the city's main burn hospital.⁵
• Deadly fires in apartment buildings and factory complexes have occurred frequently in Bangladesh. In 2021, over 50 people died when a fire swept through a food-processing factory in Dhaka.⁶

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera, ²Reuters, ³New York Times, ⁴BBC News, ⁵NDTV.com and ⁶Independent.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by The Daily Star. Deadly fires and industrial disasters have been a recurring problem in Bangladesh due to governance and regulation issues. Until government indifference and lax enforcement of fire safety rules give way to a credible and accountable health and safety regulation structure, innocent citizens will continue to lose their lives in tragedies like this one.
• Narrative B, as provided by US News & World Report. It's unfair to point the finger at the Bangladeshi government, which swiftly saved many lives, launched a prompt investigation, and took appropriate measures to hold the culprits accountable. Faulty gas cylinders, defective air conditioners, and poor electrical wiring could have caused the fire. If only the building owners had fixed its structural issues, such a tragedy could have been avoided.