"Six of my nephews and nieces have died. I have three sisters. I am the only brother. Five of my three sisters' children died. The eldest niece's child also died. They had come for a vacation in a group of nine. Three survived," Aminul Islam lamented.
He is a resident of the capital city Dhaka.
On Saturday morning, around 7: 30AM, a fire at the wooden Tuptup Resort on the Patuartek beach of Inani in Ukhiya, Cox's Bazar, claimed the lives of six of his family members. On hearing the news, he flew from Dhaka to Cox's Bazar.
At around 2 PM today, Aminul Islam shared this information with journalists at Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital.
He said, "They were supposed to return to Dhaka around 10:30 AM today. They came to Cox’s Bazar for a vacation last Thursday. When the fire broke out in the morning, two of them were outside. They informed me of the incident."
The resort where the fire broke out at Inani in Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, is named Tuptup. At 2:15PM today, Cox’s Bazar Fire Service Deputy Assistant Director Syed Morshed Hossain confirmed to Prothom Alo that ten bodies were recovered in the incident.
He mentioned that there could be more bodies. The rescue operation is ongoing.
According to local sources, the fire started at the resort adjacent to Marine Drive road at around 7: 30 AM. On receiving the news, the fire service personnel reached the scene. Later, local residents, with police assistance, began controlling and rescue operations.
Fire Service and Civil Defence Chattogram Division’s Deputy Director Md Toufikul Islam Bhuiyan said that Cox’s Bazar Fire Service was notified of the fire at 7: 23 AM today.
The fire service team arrived at the site around 8 AM. The fire was brought under control at 8: 15 AM. Four people died in the two toilets on the third floor.
Toufikul Islam Bhuiyan stated that strong winds from the sea quickly spread the fire in the wooden resort.
Such establishments need to have portable fire extinguishers, fire alarms, hoses, and fire safety plans. But none of these were present in the resort. There was no fire licence either. The resort had been built only seven or eight months ago.
He also mentioned that there was a dispute over the ownership of the place.
Among the deceased, identities of six have been confirmed—Dhaka's Ishrat Jahan Maliha (30), Milita Mehezabin Alvi (23), Laila Jahan Nabila (27), Nafishta Mim (27), Chuadanga’s Fariha Kabir (33), and five-year-old Faizan Ahmed.
Among the six identified, five are women and one is a child.
Six burn victims from the incident are being treated at Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital.
Among them are Mugda Medical College Hospital’s doctor Shihab Uddin (31) and his wife Nafiza Nawaz Khan (29).