63 students hospitalized after fire at Bangladesh religious school

At least 63 students were hospitalized after a fire broke out early Tuesday at an Islamic religious school in Bangladesh’s central Narayanganj district, a fire official told Anadolu Agency.

The blaze started on the second floor of a five-story building in Narayanganj, about 16 kilometers (10 miles) southeast of the capital, Dhaka, Abdullah Al Arefin, deputy assistant director of the Narayanganj Fire Service and Civil Defence, said.

Four firefighting units were sent to the scene and brought the fire under control. Most students escaped without burns, though several suffered from smoke inhalation, Al Arefin said.

The fire began in the library and office rooms of Jamiatul Ashrafia Madrasa, which has about 1,300 students, most of whom are boarders.

All 63 affected students were taken to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka.

Four students were admitted to intensive care in critical condition, including one who was placed on life support, resident surgeon Sultan Mahmud Sikdar told “The Daily Star”.

Sikdar said none of the students had suffered burns, but all had respiratory problems believed to have been caused by smoke inhalation.

A preliminary assessment by the Fire Service indicated that an electrical short circuit may have caused the fire.