Over 20,000 slum dwellers turned paupers within hours in Friday (Aug 16) night’s fast-moving fire in the city’s Mirpur area, reports said.
A massive fire has swept through a slum in the capital leaving atleast 20,000 people homeless. About 15,000 homes were destroyed in the Chalantika slum late on Friday.
Many homes had plastic roofs, which helped the flames to spread. No deaths have been reported, although several people were injured.
Most residents are low-wage earners and many were away after the Muslim festival of Eid-ul-Azha. There is no word on the cause of the fire.
An investigation is under way. Firefighters took more than six hours to put out the flames.
The government says relief will be provided for the many thousands who are now without shelter.
Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Atiqul Islam and local MP Elias Mollah visited the spot on Friday night.
Talking to reporters at the spot, the mayor said shelter centres were opened at local schools for the victims while the city corporation would arrange food for them.
In February a fire in the historic district of Dhaka killed about 80 people, and nine died in another blaze in a slum in the coastal city of Chattogram.
