At least 48 burn victims, mostly students, have been admitted to the emergency department of the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute following the Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft crash into Milestone School and College in Diabari, Uttara, Dhaka. Many of the burn victims are in critical condition.
The atmosphere inside the Burn Institute is heavy with grief as relatives anxiously wait for news. Many patients have suffered burns covering between 30% and 95% of their bodies and are receiving intensive care in the ICU.
Inside the emergency ward in the afternoon, 11-year-old Mahid Hasan Arian, a fourth-grade student, was undergoing treatment while his mother, Monika Akter Ankhi, mourned outside. Through her tears, she repeatedly prayed, “Oh Allah, please bring my child back to me.”
She said, “My son’s whole body is burned. I cannot bear this pain. He went to school around 7:45 am. His classes were supposed to end at 1:30 pm, followed by coaching until 3:30 pm. I fed him breakfast, and then this happened.”
Their home is near the school. Upon hearing the news, the family rushed to the school and found him badly burned. He was first taken to Bangladesh Medical College Hospital and then transferred to the Burn Institute.
Outside the emergency department, a young man’s father was crying uncontrollably. “My son told me in the morning he would bring ice cream on the way back from school. Now all I see is his burnt face. I just want peace. I want him to survive,” he said.
Rubina Akter, the aunt of seventh-grade student Shayan, said most of his body has been severely burned. The family, residents of Sector 10 in Uttara, said, “He left home healthy in the morning, and now he is in the hospital.”
Junaid Hasan’s mother, Jharna Akter, who has a third-grade son, was also crying outside the emergency ward. She said her son has been shifted to the ICU. “He would have gone home soon after school ended, but now he’s in the ICU,” she said.
Eleventh-grade student Saiyum Khan told Times of Bangladesh, “The junior students’ shift started in the morning. I was in class when I heard a loud noise. Then I saw fire, and the situation was bad. Army personnel arrived quickly and started rescue efforts, followed by the fire service.”
A distressed father said, “An aunt asked me to hold my daughter. Both her hands are burned. I brought her to the hospital.”
According to the Burn Institute, all burn victims are aged between 9 and 19. The extent of burns among some patients are: Ashraful Islam 15%, Rohan 50%, Shreya 5%, Kabya 20%, Chan Mia 40%, Yusha 6%, Meherin 4%, Rupi Barua 6%, Tasmia 5%, Imon (extent unknown), Jaina 8%, Saeeba 8%, Payel 10%, Kafi 10%, Munsura 5%, Alvina 5%, Niloy 15%, Masum 60%, Ayen 60%, Mahtab 40%, Arian 55%, Mokin 62%, Abir 90%, Anijan 100%, Nazia 80%, and Meherin Chowdhury’s body is 100% burned.
Additionally, seven other patients—Nafis, Shamim, Shayan Yusuf, Mahia, Afnan, Faiyaz, and Samia—are in the ICU in critical condition.
At least 50 burn victims have been admitted to the National Burn Institute in Dhaka, all seriously injured. Many other students with burns and injuries are being treated at various hospitals in Uttara.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has confirmed that 19 people were killed in the tragic accident.