15 BRTC buses damaged in Joar Sahara depot fire

At least 15 buses of Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) were damaged as a fire broke out at a bus depot of BRTC in Khilkhet area of Dhaka early today.

Of the damaged buses, eight were out of order previously, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader told reporters at a preparatory meeting on upcoming EID  at Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) headquarters in Dhaka.

Photo: Star/ Shaheen Mollah

The minister also instructed the concerned authorities to conduct a probe into the incident.

The fire broke out at the depot in Nikunja around 1:30am, Shafiqul Islam, senior station officer of Fire Service and Civil Defence in Uttara, adding that the cause of the fire is yet to be known.

Photo: Star/ Palash Khan

The incident took place on the ground floor and first floor of the depot, he said.

On information, six units of firefighters from Uttara, Kurmitola and Baridhara fire service stations rushed to the spot and doused the fire after an hour-long effort, the fire service official added.

Meanwhile, the government formed a committee headed by Safiqul Islam, additional secretary (admin) of Road Transport and Highway Division (RTHD), to investigate the incident.

The committee was asked to submit its probe report within three working days, RTHD secretary Nazrul Islam told The Daily Star.