A fire broke out on the eighth floor of hotel “Cox Ambassador” in the Kolatoli area of Cox’s Bazar town at around 6.30pm on Thursday.
No casualties have been reported in the incident. Over a hundred tourists staying inside the hotel, along with guests from neighbouring hotels and local residents, poured onto the street fearing the blaze might spread.
Two Fire Service units rushed to the scene to extinguish the flames upon receiving the news. Syed Morshed Hossain, deputy director of Cox’s Bazar Fire Service and Civil Defence, confirmed the incident.
He said the fire originated from an air conditioner in a room on the eighth floor, adding that the Fire Service worked at the scene and brought the situation under control.
A series of fire incidents has occurred across various tourist areas in Cox’s Bazar district in recent times.
At around 6.00am on Tuesday, a fire broke out in a residential house adjacent to a hotel on Soikatpara Road in Kolatoli hotel-motel zone, destroying at least four residential houses before four Fire Service units controlled the blaze.
Earlier, on 23 October, another fire occurred at residential hotel Sea Princess at Sugandha Point in the town, though prompt action by the Fire Service brought the fire under control and prevented major damage or casualties.
The largest and most tragic incident took place on 17 October, when a devastating fire broke out at Tuptup Resto and Resort – a two-storey structure made of wood, bamboo, and tin in the Patuartek beach area of Inani under Ukhiya upazila – killing at least 11 people.
The fire spread early in the morning while tourists at the resort were asleep, leaving several others injured. An investigation committee headed by the additional district magistrate has been formed to find out the cause of the fire.
Meanwhile, these repeated fire incidents have raised fresh concerns over fire safety arrangements across hotels, motels, and tourist establishments in Cox’s Bazar.
