Another firefighter, Khandaker Jannatul Nayem, 37, has succumbed to burn injuries sustained during the recent chemical warehouse fire in Tongi, Gazipur, bringing the total number of deaths from the incident to four.
Nayem, a warehouse inspector with the Fire Service and Civil Defence, died at 10am on Saturday while receiving treatment at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka. His death was confirmed by Talha Bin Jasim, an official from the Fire Service’s media cell.
Nayem suffered burns over 42 per cent of his body while responding to the devastating fire at a chemical warehouse in Tongi’s Sahara Market on 22 September. He had remained in critical condition since the incident.
A total of four firefighters were injured during the operation. With Nayem’s passing, three of them have now died. The other two firefighters Shamim Ahmed and Nurul Huda died on 23 and 24 September respectively, while undergoing treatment.
Additionally, a warehouse employee, Al Amin Hossain Babu, died on 26 September, raising the overall death toll from the blaze to four.
Nayem had been serving as a warehouse inspector at the Tongi Fire Station. He joined the Fire Service on 24 August, 2016, and previously served as station officer in Manikganj and Narayanganj before receiving promotions that led him to warehouse inspection roles in Chattogram and later Tongi.
He is survived by his parents, Khandaker Mozammel Haque and Delwara Begum, as well as his wife and one child.
Firefighters across the country continue to risk their lives responding to high-risk emergencies. To date, 51 members of the Fire Service and Civil Defence have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty—Nayem is the latest to join this solemn list of national heroes.
