48 madrasa students hospitalised after library fire in Narayanganj

At least 48 students of a madrasa in Narayanganj’s Fatullah were hospitalised after suffering from smoke inhalation when a fire broke out in its library early Tuesday.

Three of them are in critical condition and have been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery. One of the critically ill students is receiving ventilator support.

The fire broke out at the library on the second floor of Jamia Ashrafia Madrasa in Shantidhara, Signboard area of Fatullah, at around 1:55am.

Four units of the Fire Service brought the blaze under control at 3:43am.

Dr Sultan Mahmud Sikder, a resident surgeon at the burn institute, said 48 students had so far been taken to its emergency department.

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All affected students were receiving necessary treatment, he said, adding that more patients could arrive.

According to preliminary information, students of the madrasa's Kitab department were asleep when the fire broke out in the library on the second floor.

Smoke quickly spread through the building, leaving several sleeping students suffering from breathing difficulties and inhalation injuries. Teachers and others at the madrasa rescued them and took them to hospital.

The cause of the fire and the extent of the damage could not immediately be determined.