Madrasa fire leaves 77 hospitalised
Several students are fighting for their lives after thick smoke from a fire at a madrasa library in Narayanganj left them with serious breathing complications, with one patient requiring life support and three others receiving critical care.
A total of 77 people, including students, have been admitted to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery following the fire at Jamia Ashrafia Madrasa in the Signboard area of Fatullah.
Four patients are currently in the hospital’s critical care unit, while one is on a mechanical ventilator. Doctors have warned that none of the patients can be considered out of danger until they have been monitored for at least 72 hours.
Acting Director and Professor Dr Mohammad Robiul Karim Khan Papon disclosed the information while speaking to reporters outside the institute’s emergency department on Tuesday.
He said 77 patients had been admitted in phases since the incident, while 14 had already been discharged. The remaining patients were under medical observation.
Describing the condition of the critically ill patients, Papon said several were struggling to maintain normal oxygen saturation levels, while some were coughing up blood.
Others were experiencing breathing difficulties, abdominal pain, eye irritation and severe headaches.
The institute’s Resident Surgeon (Emergency), Dr Sultan Mahmud Sikder, also confirmed the situation, saying four patients were receiving treatment in the critical care unit, including one on ventilator support.
A pulmonologist and a respiratory specialist were attending to the ventilated patient, while an eye specialist had been called in to treat several students who had sustained eye injuries from the incident. Critical care specialists were also coordinating their treatment.
Dr Sikder said 63 students had been brought to the hospital after suffering from smoke inhalation. Four patients in critical condition were shifted to the intensive care unit (ICU), with one requiring mechanical ventilation to support breathing.
Three of the ICU patients were identified as Yusuf, 18, Khairul, 22, and Zobayer, 18.
According to students’ accounts, the fire apparently originated in the madrasa’s second-floor library while students from the kitab (traditional Islamic texts) section were sleeping in their rooms overnight.
The flames quickly generated thick smoke, which spread throughout the building and left many students struggling to breathe. Several suffered serious respiratory complications and inhalation injuries as panic gripped the premises.
Teachers, local residents and rescue workers rushed to evacuate the students and take those affected to hospital.
Azizur Rahman, a teacher at Jamia Ashrafia Madrasa, said the institution was situated in the Shantidhara area of Fatullah. He said the fire broke out in the library while everyone was asleep, and the spreading smoke left students and others inside the building ill.
Partha Halder, a firefighter at Kanchpur Fire Station, said the blaze originated in the library on the second floor. Four fire service units rushed to the madrasa after receiving information about the fire at around 1:55am on Monday.
He said burning books generated a large volume of smoke, which rapidly spread through the building and affected several sleeping students.
The firefighters brought the blaze under control at 3:44am, after around one hour and 45 minutes of operations.
Abdullah Al Arefin, Assistant Director of Narayanganj Fire Service, said the exact cause of the fire would be established through an investigation.
He said preliminary assessments suggested that a mosquito coil or an electrical short circuit might have triggered the fire. The injured students were receiving treatment at hospital.