A fire that broke out at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on Saturday afternoon gutted a cargo village section that housed imported goods, including raw materials for industries, forcing the suspension of flight operations for some seven hours at Dhaka鈥檚 lone airport.
Meanwhile, dozens of security personnel, including 25 members of the Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defence Party, were injured while working to douse the fire that ultimately came under control at about 9:00pm.
Immediately after the incident, the airport鈥檚 fire section, the Bangladesh Air Force fire unit, and other relevant agencies rushed to the spot and jointly began efforts to douse the fire, according to a press release issued by the HSIA.
The Bangladesh Civil Aviation Authority, The Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence, the Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy, the Bangladesh Air Force worked to extinguish the fire, according to the Inter Services Public Relations directorate.
Additionally, two platoons of the Border Guard Bangladesh members were deployed at the scene, according to a BGB press release.
The fire was reported at about 2:30pm and was brought under control at about 9:00pm after about seven hours of efforts by 37 units of firefighters, according to the Fire Service and Civil Defence.
At 7:30pm, civil aviation and commerce adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin told reporters on the spot that the fire originated at a part of the cargo village where mainly the imported goods werestored while export goods were stored in an adjacent part that remained safe from the fire.
He said that a high-level committee would be formed to investigate the fire incident.聽聽
鈥楻ight now, our main focus is to douse the fire fully and resume the flight operations as soon as possible,鈥� he added.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism said in a press release on Saturday evening that all flight operations would be resumed from 9:00pm, about seven hours after suspension.
HSIA executive director SM Ragib Samad said in a voice message at about 9:30pm that the flight operations at the airport resumed at 9:00pm.
He also said that the first flight after the fire was doused landed safely at 9:06pm.
Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defence Party public relations officer Md Ashikuzzaman told 抖阴精品 that 25 Ansar members were injured in the fire as of the last update at about 6:00pm.
鈥楾he injured were rushed to the Combined Military Hospital and Kurmitola General Hospital,鈥� he added.
Ansar North Zone commander Md Golam Mawlah Tuhin, who was deployed at the spot at around 6:00pm, said that Ansar members had noticed the fire first and informed the authorities.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association senior vice-president Inamul Haq Khan said that the sample section of the BGMEA was fully burnt.
鈥楾he incoming and outgoing samples are kept there. My factory鈥檚 samples worth $40,000 have burnt, and I am worried about 8,00,000 pieces of goods to be exported as I am still unaware about the goods,鈥� he added.
In the meantime, BGMEA vice-president Faisal Samad urged its members to inform the trade body about whether their import consignments were existing at the airport, including the information about buyer communication and insurance claims.
JFK Fashions managing director Ltd M Kafil Uddin told 抖阴精品 that most of the consignments belonged to the RMG manufacturers.
He, while visiting the area, also said that their business was going to face a big blow as global cargo companies could suspend their cargo flights.
As the fire broke out at the cargo village, hundreds of passengers suffered for several hours at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka due to the suspension of flights.聽
At least 11 flights, including nine international ones, have been diverted to the Shah Amanat International Airport in Chattogram and the Osmani International Airport in Sylhet due to suspension of the flights at HSIA.
Meanwhile, flight passengers were seen waiting at Dhaka-Mymensingh road, outside of the airport, while a number of passengers were waiting at the passenger terminal.
A large number of the members of the law enforcement agencies were deployed at the airport.
No one, including passengers or their relatives, was allowed to enter there as of Saturday evening.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir described several recent fire incidents in the country, including one at the Shahjalal Cargo Village, as premeditated and demanded a full investigation.
In a statement issued on Saturday Fakhrul said that the public perceives these incidents as interconnected.
鈥楾hese fires are pre-planned. Both domestic and international adversaries are still active, seeking to undermine the success of the people鈥檚 uprising,鈥� the statement read.
At about 10:00pm, Brigadier General Muhammad Jahed Kamal, director general of the Fire Service and Civil Defence, told reporters on the spot that there was no risks of the fire spreading further.
鈥楴ow we are working to douse it completely, hopefully, within 30 minutes, it would be possible. The wind direction and dividing wall are the main obstacles to dousing the fire,鈥� he added.
He also said that two firefighters were injured while working to put down the fire.
The spot of fire was an import cargo section, with an open area of about 400x400 gauges where the imported cargo is stored, he said.
No casualties were reported and the cause of the fire would be known only after an investigation, he added.
Biman Bangladesh Airlines formed a high-level committee to probe the fire incident, Bangladesh Sangbad Sanstha reported.
According to an office order, the seven-member committee was asked to submit a detailed report to the Biman鈥檚 managing director and chief executive officer within five working days.
The committee would identify the cause of the fire, assessing the extent of damage, determining responsibilities, and recommending measures to prevent any similar incident in future.
