The fire that broke out at building no. 7 of the secretariat in Segunbagicha, Dhaka, was brought under control after nearly six and a half hours on Thursday (26 December) morning.
The fire was contained at approximately 8:15am, according to Shahjahan Shikdar, an official of the Fire Service’s media cell.
The Fire Service reported receiving the first alert about the fire at 1:52am.
By 1:54am, their teams had reached the scene. Initially, eight units were deployed to tackle the fire; however, as the situation escalated, the number of units increased to 19.
Tragically, one firefighter, Sohanur Zaman Nayan, lost his life during the operation.
Fire Service DG Brigadier General Zahid Kamal, disclosed during a briefing at 6:45am that Nayan was hit by a truck while crossing the road to connect a water line from a pump.
He was rushed to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
No further casualties or the extent of damages have yet been reported.
The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time.
Building no 7 of the secretariat houses the offices of six ministries and multiple departments.
According to information available on the Cabinet Division’s website, the affected ministries and departments include:
- Ministry of Youth and Sports
- Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications, and Information Technology
- Posts and Telecommunications Division
- Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development, and Cooperatives
- Local Government Division
- Rural Development and Cooperative Division
- Ministry of Labour and Employment
- Ministry of Finance
- Finance Division
- Financial Institutions Division
- Internal Resources Division
- Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges
- Roads and Highways Division
As of now, investigations are ongoing to determine the cause and assess the damage.
The Fire Service is continuing its efforts to ensure the safety of the affected areas.
