Two devastating fire incidents occurred in the Gazipur district’s Shafipur Spinning Mill factory and the Jessore district’s Benapole Land Port on Sunday morning.
But there was no report of casualties instantly, nor about the origin of fire, Fire Service sources said, however, the amount of the estimated losses might be Tk 50 crore.
Two probe bodies have been formed to investigate the Gazipur fire incident, while three investigation committees formed to inquiry into the port fire incident with instruction to submit the report within 10 working days, according to them.
Akhteruzzaman Liton, Assistant Director at Gazipur Fire Service and Civil Defense (FSCD), said “The fire broke out from the jhut godown of the recycling plant of Margasa Spinning Mill owned by the Jamuna Group around 5.15am. The fire engulfed the entire tin-shed factory and collapsed it around 8.30am”.
Following information, 15 fire engines from Kaliakoir, Gazipur, Joydebpur and Savar rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire around 12:00pm, the Fire Service official said.
The fire burnt the recycling plant, waving and finishing section of the mill, he said. The district administration and the Fire Service formed two committees to investigate the incident, according to him.
The factory’s Deputy General Manager Alamgir Hossain said, “The factory caught fire around 5:30am, which rapidly engulfed finishing, knitting, cotton and spinning sections. We initially tried to douse the fire using our extinguishers.”
He said that the 13 people who were working at night shift were able to escape fire safely. About 1,200 employees work in the factory.
He claimed that the amount of the estimated losses in the fire would be about Tk 50 crore.
Gazipur District Administration constituted a five-member committee, headed by Additional District Magistrate Rahenul Islam to investigate the incident. The committee will submit a report within 10 working days.
The other five-member committee headed by district FSCD Deputy Director (Operation) Jahurul Islam was formed to find out the cause of the fire.
Meanwhile, another fire broke out at a shed of the Benapole Land Port in Jessore district around 6:00am and the flames were doused in six hours through frantic efforts of 13 fire engines, said Jessore FSCD Assistant Director Parimal Kundu.
The fire might have originated from an electric short circuit at the shed No. 23 of the port around, the Fire Service official said.
Goods worth over Tk 50 lakh at the shed No. 23 and several trucks parked in the area were gutted in the fire, said Nitai Chandra Sen, Director of the port.
The Shipping Ministry has formed a three-member probe committee with its joint secretary as the chief.
A five-member probe committee headed by Assistant Director Abdul Hannan of Benapole Port and another by Additional Commissioner Firoz Uddin of Benapole Customs have also been formed to discover the causes of fire, said Jessore Deputy Commissioner Humayun Kabir.
