‘Thanks to them, I am alive today’

As harrowing stories of yesterday's inferno at a commercial building on Bailey Road kept coming , a few survivors today expressed their gratitude to the fire service and civil defence personnel for saving their lives.

"I wouldn't be here if they didn't reach there in time," said Professor Ahmed Kamruzzaman Majumder, who went to the Zesty Restaurant of the building with his family to celebrate his daughter Waziha's 12th birthday.

Majumder, a professor at Stamford University, had no idea about the ordeal he and his wife and two daughters would face in the next couple of hours.

Today in a conversation with The Daily Star, he recounted the fire incident and how he and his family survived with the help of the brave fire fighters.

He said that he and his two daughters, Waziha Zaman Majumder (12) and Wazah Zaman Majumder (7), along with his wife Advocate Mahrufa Gulshan Ara, went to the restaurant to spend some quality time together.

It was an instant decision to go to the restaurant as it was just two buildings away from our home, he said.

After entering the restaurant, they ordered food. However, Kamruzzaman soon smelled something burning and, shortly afterwards, saw smoke rising from the lower floors.

"Due to my research and work on disaster management, I could sense the danger," he said.

"Looking out the window, I saw people gathering and shouting, pointing towards a building across the street. Smoke was also rising beside the restaurant window."

He said he didn't waste any time and decided to leave the restaurant premises as soon as possible. His plan was to go upstairs.

"There were about 10-12 people in the restaurant at the time. I instructed them to leave immediately as well," he said.

"There was no safety gear in the restaurant," he recalled.

As they moved out of the restaurant to the lobby, a space that can barely fit 12-15 people, they found smoke coming heavily from the downstairs.

"Dozens of people were trying to go upstairs. Meanwhile, some people were attempting to go downstairs too," he recalled.

Soon they realized going down won't be possible through the thick, hazardous smoke and followed us to the roof.

"The smoke was becoming alarmingly dense by seconds. As we were in pursuit of fresh air, the smoke was following us like death," he said.

Kamruzzaman said he heaved a sigh of relief to find the rooftop door open.

Even on the roof, at least 75 percent of the space was by occupied restaurants and prayer space, he said.

However, the roof provided some fresh air, but not guarantee of safety.

"As time passed, the smoke and heat from the fire intensified, relentlessly rising towards the rooftop and causing fear to grip the approximately 40 people, mostly women, who had taken shelter there," he said.

As smoke began to engulf the roof, people tried to save themselves covering their faces with wet clothes. Many sat down in prayer on the roof, desperately praying for survival, he recalled.

"Just as hope dwindled, we heard news of the fire service's arrival. However, we couldn't see the crane due to a rooftop restaurant blocking the view."

Then after some time, we saw a firefighter climbed up to the roof. Finally, around midnight, we spotted the crane, he said.

He said the fire fighters, over the next two hours, gradually lifted and evacuated people in groups, children and women first and then others.

"The fire service rescued us with exceptional skill," Kamruzzaman.

"Today, I have already ordered birthday cake for Waziha. We'll have to celebrate her birthday, as she told me, 'Baba, eta amar dwitiyo jonmo, (Father, it's my second life), said Prof Kamruzzaman.