Shops in Dhaka which are at risk of fire and accidents will be closed

Prime Minister’s Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman F Rahman said that after Eid, some shops in Dhaka which are at risk of fire and accidents will be closed. According to a related source, the government is going to be strict against the markets, hospitals and buildings that are at risk of fire after Eid. The fire-prone building is currently under intelligence surveillance.  Salman F Rahman said, “We consider one or two shops unsafe and accidents can happen there.” We have to take strict action against them. Although Salman F. Rahman gave a message of strict action on behalf of the government, he did not name any market that will be closed.

 

Most of the buildings in the capital Dhaka have been constructed without fully complying with the fire service and civil defense instructions. There is no fire alarm system in these buildings. There is no adequate water and firefighting system. There are enough stairs but they are not open. Shops-warehouses have also been placed on stairs in commercial buildings. Even in the vicinity of the market-shopping mall building, there are hanging electrical cables and AC equipment connections. Altogether, 55 percent of Dhaka’s buildings are at risk. This information is available by reviewing a recently published fire service report. The report was prepared by inspecting various aspects of fire safety of buildings across the country from January 1 to December 31, 2022.

 

Recently, the dangerous market like Bangabazar in the capital was declared dangerous on April 10, 2019, but the building owners or businessmen did not pay attention to the notice of the fire service because they did not have the power to take punitive measures. And due to legal weakness, the organization could not take effective action against them. In the last few days, several big fires have shaken all quarters.

 

The fire service and civil defense have listed markets, shopping malls, hospitals, commercial and residential buildings in the capital that are at risk of fire. The list includes 1,305 markets and buildings including Gauchia Market, Noor Mansion, Rajdhani Super Market, Karwan Bazar Kitchen Market, Lily Plaza, Dhanmondi Hawkers Market. Of these, 450 buildings have been identified as high-risk. And there are more than four hundred hospitals including Dhaka Medical and Suhrawardy in this list.

 

The fire service has started sending warnings to these market authorities and building owners. All the owners of these buildings will receive warnings or notices, according to fire service sources. According to the fire service report, 24,102 fire incidents occurred in the country in 2022. 98 people were killed and 407 people were injured in these accidents. Among the dead are 13 fire service officials. According to the report, Tk 342.59 crore has been caused by fire in the year 2022. And the estimated value of recovered goods is Tk 1,808.32 crore. Besides, 9,517 fires were brought under control before going into operation.

 

The fire service inspected 5,869 buildings to prepare the report. It identifies 2,223 buildings as dangerous. Among them, there are 671 high-risk buildings and 1,606 vulnerable buildings. At the same time, satisfactory results are obtained in 3 thousand 96 buildings in fire safety. Dhaka has the highest number of 54.67 percent buildings and Mymensingh has the lowest number of 1.93 percent buildings under fire risk. 54.29 percent of buildings in Chittagong are at risk of fire. Besides, 29.62 percent in Barisal, 41.46 percent in Khulna, 24 percent in Rangpur, 19.76 percent in Sylhet, 14.97 percent in Rajshahi and 1.93 percent in Mymensingh are under fire risk.