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Shopping mall blaze kills 1 in Bangladesh

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-14 15:01

DHAKA -- Despite having most modern fire safety devices and system, Bangladesh's biggest shopping complex Bashundhara City could not be saved from the devastating fire because of lack of fire fighting drills, local media reported on Saturday.

A big fire broke out at the top part of the high-rise building in the capital Dhaka on Friday, which last for some 7-8 hours after spreading to 12th to top 19th floor, leaving 7 people killed and nearly 20 others injured.

Engineer M Foizullah, the chief architect of Bashundhara City, said the failure of the fire security system in the complex is due to the lack of practice of fire drills.

"In all such high-rise mall or buildings there should be regular fire drills at regular intervals and a big fire drills annually," Foizullah was quoted by state-run news agency BSS as saying.

"We have installed all modern and security and safety facilities including hydraulic system and emergency exits," he said.

Faizullah said no fire fighting exercises were carried out that made the concerned personnel helpless during the roar of the sudden devastating blaze.  

Besides, Director General of Fire Service and Civil Defense Abu Nayeem Md Shahidullah said fire hydrants inside the complex were useless as the building's reservoir had no water, according to local newspaper The Daily Star.

The fire hydrants not functioning and combustible items inside helped the fire spread fast, the newspaper said, quoting an expert.

A fire service official said Bashundhara City's own fire fighters had very little training and they could not control the fire.

Besides, lack of required equipments for the fire brigade was also blamed for the delay to extinguish the fire on Friday.

Despite reaching the spot immediately after the fire broke out at the 17th floor, the fire fighters were helpless at first as they do not have required logistics and equipment to tame a blaze beyond 13th floor of a building, The Daily Star said.