Fire causes huge damage to Benapole land port
Cotton, machinery of Gazipur spinning mill burnt
Our Correspondents, Benapole and Gazipur
A devastating fire broke out at a shed of Benapole land port, the countrys largest land port, in Jessore early yesterday causing massive damage. The fire was brought under control after six hours of joint effort by Bangladeshi and Indian fire fighters. The blaze erupted from an electric short circuit at around 4 am and burned down several Indian trucks and private cars. Later, the fire engulfed shed number 23 and another nearby shed, burning to ashes the goods stored at these sheds. The fire also burned down part of Benapole Port Police Station, said Benapole land port director Nitai Chandra Sen. However, arms, documents and various equipments could be removed from the police station.
A total of thirteen fire-fighting units, including units from India, rushed to the spot and brought the blaze under control around 10am, said Jessore fire services and civil defence assistant director Parimal Kundu.
One of the fire-fighters sustained minor injuries while dousing the fire and received primary treatment at the local upazila health complex, he added.
Goods valued at some Tk. 100 crore at Shed No. 23 and several Indian trucks parked in the area were gutted, said the president of Benapole CF Agents Association, Mafijur Rahman Sazon. Shipping minister Shahjahan Khan, local lawmaker Sheik Afil Uddin, Jessore deputy commissioner Dr Humaun Kabir and Benapole Customs commissioner Sawkat Hossain visited the affected area. Hadiuzaman, an importer at Benapole port, complained, I have lost Tk. 1 crore while importing the goods. I want compensation from the port authorities. Three separate probe bodies have been formed to investigate the incident. The Customs department has constituted a five-member committee, headed by additional commissioner of Benapole Customs house, Firojuddin, to investigate the incident. The committee will submit its report within
10 working days. Another five-member committee has been formed by the port authorities, with its assistant director (operations) as its chief, to find out the cause of the fire. This committee, too, will submit its report within 10 working days.
A third three-member committee has been formed by the shipping and ports ministry, with its joint secretary as its chief. The committee will also submit its report within 10 working days.
Meanwhile, a devastating fire broke out at a recycling plant of Shamim Spinning Mill, a sister concern of Jamuna Group, at Shafipur area of Kaliakoir upazila in Gazipur district early yesterday, reports our Gazipur correspondent.
Huge amounts of garment waste materials and cotton as well as machinery were reduced to ashes in the blaze. However, no casualty was reported, as workers in the night shift safely left immediately after the incident occurred.
Akteruzzaman Liton, Joydebpur assistant deputy director of fire services, said, The fire might have originated from an electrical short circuit at a denim recycling plant on the first floor of the four-storeyed tin-shed building of Shamim Spinning Mill around 5am. It soon engulfed other parts of the unit. Waste materials, clothes, threads, cotton, machinery and others goods were burnt in the fire. At one stage, a part of the factory collapsed.
On receiving information, 14 fire-fighting units from Joydebpur, Kalaikoir, Tongi, Dhaka EPZ, Savar and Mirzapur of Tangail rushed to the spot and tried to douse the flames.
But around 8.30am, the units activities were disrupted by a shortage of water. They managed to control the flames only around 11.25am, after six hours of frantic efforts.
The actual cause for the incident could not be immediately known. It will be ascertained after the investigation, said Akteruzzaman Liton.
Factory sources said raw cotton was produced in this recycling plat from waste clothes collected from different garments factories, which is used later to make threads for garments.
General manager of the factorys fire and security department, Harmuz Ali, said, First, the denim recycling section of the factory caught fire around 5.15am. The blaze rapidly engulfed the finishing, knitting, cotton and spinning sections. We initially tried to douse the blaze using our extinguishers. The fire-fighters rushed to the spot within 15 minutes of our call.
He also said, The 13 workers included an officer who was working at the factory during the night shift. However, all of them came out safely from the factory immediately after the incident. He added that the tin shed of the factory collapsed after the fire.
The superintendent of industrial police in Gazipur, Shoeb Ahmed, senior assistant superintendent of Gazipur police, Mizanur Rahman, officer-in-charge (OC) of Gazipur industrial police, Mohammed Shahidullah, and OC of Kaliakoir police station, Abdul Motaleb Mia, visited the spot.
The district administration and fire services have formed two separate probe committees to investigate the incident. The Gazipur district administration has formed a five-member committee, led by additional district magistrate Rahenul Islam. The committee has been asked to submit the investigation report within five working days. On the other hand, the fire services have formed another five-member committee, led by its deputy director, Mohammed Zahurul Amin, who has been asked to submit its report within 10 working days.
