Deadly price of tourism greed
A fire at a wooden seaside resort in Cox’s Bazar has claimed at least 10 lives, exposing how commercial interests, inadequate safety measures and the failure to enforce official warnings can turn a tourist destination into a death trap.
The three-storey Tuptup Resort at Patowartek beach in Inani, Ukhia, which had been operating for only seven or eight months, was reduced to ashes on Saturday morning.
The tragedy occurred despite a Fire Service and Civil Defence inspection in June that reportedly classified the property as risky and prompted a warning notice.
By 1:30pm, firefighters had recovered 10 bodies, while six people suffering burn injuries were receiving treatment at Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital.
The cause of the fire has yet to be established, although
District Commissioner Md A Mannan said it was initially suspected to have originated from a kitchen stove.
A five-member investigation committee headed by an additional district magistrate has been formed to determine how the blaze started.
Fire Service and Civil Defence Deputy Director for the Chattogram division Md Taufiqul Islam Bhuiyan said the service received the emergency call at 7:23am and firefighters reached the resort at around 8am. The nearest fire station is approximately 22 kilometres away.
The strong sea wind helped the flames spread rapidly through the wooden structure, according to fire officials.
Director General Brig Gen Sultanul Afrin Junaid said the fire was brought under control at around 11:30am.
Taufiqul said the resort had no portable fire extinguishers, alarms, hose pipes or fire safety plan.
It also lacked a fire licence. A restaurant occupied the ground floor, while guests stayed on the second and third floors.
Four victims were found in two washrooms on the third floor, according to the initial fire service account.
Warning ignored, resort kept operating The most serious questions concern the authorities’ response to the earlier inspection.
Junaid said the fire service had inspected the resort in June, identified it as risky and served a notice.
The management allegedly ignored the warning and continued operating without the required authorisation.
Taufiqul also said the land was involved in an ownership dispute.
Junaid acknowledged that many resorts built with wood and other combustible materials in Cox’s Bazar and elsewhere lack the necessary permissions.
He said the fire service would contact operators, issue notices and spread safety messages through the Cox’s Bazar Development Authority and industry associations.
The department would also review its legal powers and monitoring limitations.
He warned that the approaching dry season could increase the risk of similar incidents.
The resort’s manager, Suman Islam, was taken into police custody for questioning, said Atikur Rahman Majumder, officer-in-charge of Ukhiya Police Station.
The owners, identified as Niaz Morshed and Tanvir, remained untraceable following the incident.
Families devastated by deaths
Six victims have been identified: Israt Jahan Maliha, 30; Militta Mehezabin Alvi, 23; Laila Jahan Nabila, 27; Nafista Meem, 27, all from Dhaka; Fariha Kabir, 33, from Chuadanga; and five-year-old Fayizan Ahmed.
Two victims were university students. Md Nafis Tehami studied Chinese Language and Culture at Dhaka University’s Institute of Modern Languages, while Laila Jahan Nabila was a chemistry student at Jagannath University.
Among the injured are Dr Shihab Uddin, 31, a physician at Mugda Medical College Hospital, and his wife, Nafiza Newaz Khan, 29.
Aminul Islam, who travelled from Dhaka after learning of the fire, said six of his nephews and nieces had died. “I have three sisters, and I am their only brother.
Five children of my three sisters are dead. My eldest niece’s baby has died too.
Nine of them had come on this trip. Three are alive,” he said. Another relative, Nur Alam, a senior marketing officer at Drug International in Chuadanga, said he had returned home on Friday for work while his family continued the holiday.
After seeing reports of the fire the following morning, he began contacting relatives.
“I found out that all six of the dead were members of my family,” he said.
Accountability beyond the investigation
The disaster has renewed concerns about fire safety enforcement, particularly in tourist areas where combustible buildings may continue operating despite official warnings.
At a separate press conference on fire safety preparations for Durga Puja, Junaid also highlighted narrow roads and densely packed buildings in Old Dhaka that obstruct firefighting operations.
He said the service was considering three-wheeled emergency vehicles and motorcycles equipped with hoses for use in narrow lanes.
Such plans may improve emergency response, but the Tuptup tragedy raises a more immediate question: why was a resort reportedly classified as risky allowed to continue receiving guests without basic fire safety arrangements?
The investigation must establish the cause of the blaze and determine whether negligence or regulatory failures contributed to the deaths. Effective enforcement against unsafe establishments is equally urgent.
For the bereaved families, however, the consequences are irreversible. Their holiday ended in tragedy, while the wider public is left waiting for answers about whether other unsafe resorts along the coast remain open despite similar warnings.
