Staff Reporter :
At least 55 shanties were gutted in a devastating fire that broke out at Taltala slum in the capital’s Mirpur area this afternoon.
The fire originated around 1:55pm at the slum near Sabuj Bangla residential area, said Lima Khanam, a duty officer of the Fire Service and Civil Defence Headquarters.
The cause of the fire could not be known immediately, she said.
Six firefighting units doused the blaze at 5:40pm, said Ershad Hossain, another duty officer of the service, adding that it gutted 55 shanties.
Nargis Begum, a slum dweller, told media that the fire erupted at a room of a two-storey tin-shed house belonging to Jahangir Hossain. Nearly 150-200 shanties were gutted in the fire, claimed the woman.
In November, at least three major fires swept through three slums in Mohakhali, Mohammadpur and Mirpur areas, burning down several hundred shanties.
According to fire officials, flames from burners, short-circuits from substandard wires, burning mosquito coils, not discarding cigarette butts properly and arson attacks are behind most of the slum fires.
Such fires intensify within moments in the slums because of illegal gas lines, they added.
