Staff Reporter :
The death toll from the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) fighter jet crash at Milestone School and College in Uttara has risen to 31 as of noon on Tuesday, with 165 people reported injured, according to a press release from the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Directorate.
Among the deceased, 16 were registered at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Dhaka; 10 at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery; two at Lubana General Hospital and Cardiac Centre; and one each at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Uttara Adhunik Medical College Hospital, and United Hospital.
Of the 165 injured, 78 remain under treatment across various medical facilities. These include eight patients at Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital, 46 at the Burn Institute, three at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, 28 at CMH, 13 at Lubana General Hospital, 60 at Uttara Adhunik Hospital, and smaller numbers at other hospitals in Dhaka.
Dr Md Sayedur Rahman, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser on Health and Family Welfare, confirmed at a briefing on Tuesday that among the deceased were 25 children, one pilot, and one teacher. Six victims remain unidentified, while 20 bodies have been handed over to their families after identification.
He appealed to the public to avoid crowding hospitals for blood donations, emphasising the urgent need for donors with rare blood groups.
The victims whose bodies have been returned include Fatema Akhter, aged nine, daughter of Gani Sheikh from Bagerhat; Samiul Karim, nine, of Barishal; Rajoni Islam, 37, of Kushtia; Mehnaz Afrin Huraira, nine, of Tangail; Sharia Akhter, 13, daughter of Rafique Mollah of Dhaka; Nusrat Jahan Anika, 10, of Dhaka; Saad Salauddin, nine, son of Mukul Salauddin of Mirpur, Dhaka; Saima Akhter, nine, daughter of Shah Alam of Gazipur; and several teenagers including AB Shamim, Afnan, and Tanvir, all aged 14.
The body of Milestone School and College teacher Maherin Chowdhury, 46, has also been handed over. The Air Force pilot, Flight Lieutenant Towkir Islam, remains in the morgue.
The accident occurred on Monday afternoon when a BAF FT-7 BGI training fighter jet crashed into a two-storey building of the school, causing extensive casualties and injuries.
