The charred body of a missing teenager was recovered on Sunday, nearly 12 days after a devastating fire at a chemical warehouse in Rupnagar Shialbari area of the capital, bringing the death toll from the incident to 17.
The deceased was identified as Marzia Sultana, 14, daughter of Sultan Mia of Rajapur village under Dharmapasha Upazila in Sunamganj district.
Md Morshed Alam, officer-in-charge of Rupnagar Police Station, confirmed the recovery of the body.
Family members, with the help of police, recovered her remains on the third floor of the burnt garment factory building. Later, police sent the body to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for autopsy.
Sultan Mia said his daughter married her cousin Joy Mia six months ago. They both were working at the same factory. Joy’s body was found, but Marzia remained missing following the factory fire on 14 October.
“We always believed Marzia’s body was still inside the building. We kept requesting to search the site, but no one allowed us. Finally, we smelled a strong stench after removing piles of burnt clothes and a machine, we found a body trapped underneath,” Sultan said.
He added, “The body was wearing a black burqa with a yellow and black T-shirt underneath. We also found her shoes under the machine. That’s how I recognised my daughter.”
Marzia’s father-in-law, Sabuj Mia, expressed frustration, saying the family had repeatedly informed police about her disappearance.
“We told them she was a worker at the factory, but they took no steps. They just told us to file a GD after the investigation. If they had searched properly earlier, her body could have been found much sooner,” he said.
OC Morshed Alam said the recovered body was badly burnt, making it difficult to determine the gender immediately. “A family had reported their daughter missing since the incident, so it’s likely the body belongs to her,” he added.
The blaze at the Rupnagar Shialbari chemical warehouse and adjoining garment factory killed 17 people, leaving several others injured and many families devastated.
