Three days have passed since a devastating fire broke out at the Import Cargo Village of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, yet the exact cause of the incident remains unclear.
Four separate investigative committees, including one from the Fire Service, are currently working to determine the source of the blaze. However, none of the committees have submitted their reports so far.
Controversy has arisen after the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) suggested that the fire originated in the import courier section, contradicting other eyewitness accounts.
While several airport officials indicated that the fire began around 2:15pm on Saturday at the Sky Capital Airlines warehouse, CAAB Chairman Air Vice Marshal Md Mostafa Mahmood Siddiq stated that the blaze started in the import courier section instead.
The absence of an official statement from the Fire Service regarding the origin and cause of the fire has raised concerns among stakeholders. Many believe the CAAB Chairman’s early remarks could influence the direction of ongoing investigations.
Though the CAAB Chairman initially pointed to a specific area, he later clarified, “Multiple agencies are looking into the matter. The actual cause of the fire will be confirmed once the investigations are complete.”
Lt Col Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury, director of Operations and Maintenance at the Fire Service and head of one of the probe committees, said, “It is not possible to draw definitive conclusions about the origin of the fire until the investigation in the affected area is complete.”
To determine the cause of the incident and assess the extent of the damage, several committees have been formed.
Those are a seven-member committee by Biman Bangladesh Airlines, a core seven-member committee led by the Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs to investigate the cause of the fire, a five-member committee from the Internal Resources Division of the Ministry of Finance to evaluate financial losses, and a five-member investigation team from the Fire Service and Civil Defence Department.
