The government has invited four countries to investigate whether there was any mismanagement behind a recent fire at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport's (HSIA) cargo village, Home Affairs Adviser Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said today (25 October).

"England was invited first, followed by Australia, Turkey, and China. Expert teams from these countries will arrive to determine the exact cause of the fire," the adviser said while speaking at a press briefing at the airport around 11:45am.

Addressing questions about the airport fire service's performance, Jahangir said, "The fire service members at the airport did not fail to extinguish the fire. If they had failed, how would the fire have been put out? If they had not acted, the fire would have spread everywhere."

When asked why it took nearly five minutes for the fire service inside the airport to reach the spot, he responded, "An accident is an accident. The units inside the airport arrived within four minutes, while the other fire brigade units arrived in phases within 20 minutes. The fire may have spread because some teams arrived late, which is why it took longer to bring it under control."

He added that the presence of chemicals in the airport warehouses contributed to the delay in controlling the blaze.

At the same briefing, Jahangir also said discussions were held on reducing passport fees for expatriate workers. 

"You know, our remittance fighters face hardships at every step. Discussions have been held to find ways to reduce passport fees for them," he said.

 

Dhaka Airport fire / Home adviser / probe