A 4-member committee has been formed by the Fire Service and Civil Defense headquarters to investigate the death of five patients at the isolation unit of city’s United Hospital on Wednesday night following a fire incident.
Director General of Fire Services and Civil Defense (DG) Brig Gen Md Sajjad Hossain confirmed the matter.
He said the inquiry committee has been asked to submit a report at the end of seven working days.
Deputy director (Dhaka) Debasis Bardhan will lead the committee, said Rasel Shikder, duty officer of fire service control room.
According to a statement by United Hospital, the fire originated from electric short circuit at 9:45 pm Wednesday and spread fast due to gusty wind.
Later, the fire service was informed immediately who brought the blaze under control at around 10:25pm with the hospital's own fire extinguishers, added the statement.
“We’ve recovered five bodies,” Kamrul Islam, duty officer of fire service control room, told the Business Post on Wednesday night.
Kamrul said they initially suspect an AC explosion caused the fire.
The five patients, of whom four were males and one female, who were killed in the fire incident are: Riazul Alam, 45, Khodeza Begum, 70, Bherun Anthony Paul, 74, Md Monir Hossain, 75 and Md Mahabub, 50, confirmed Dr Shagufa Anwar, head of Communication and Business Development department of United Hospital.
They were undergoing treatment with Covid-19 like symptoms at the isolation ward outside the main hospital building,said the statement.
Later, the hospital authorities issued a statement at night expressing regret over the fire.
In February last year, a fire broke out at Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College. The fire reportedly originated at a storeroom on the first floor of a new building of the hospital.
