The child survives

A seven-month-old boy miraculously survived after being found unconscious beneath the waterlogged streets near Mirpur Commerce College in the midst of a downpour on Thursday night.

Three  hijra individuals rushed Hossain to a hospital braving inclement weather, saving the little one's life in the process. However, the boy will now have to grow up without the love of his father, mother, and seven-year-old sister who lost their lives after coming into contact with a live wire in the waterlogged road.

Dhaka streets were flooded following 113mm rain on Thursday night, when the tragedy took place.

With little Hossain in his arms, Mizanur Rahman, 32, was trying to pass the inundated Haji Road along with his wife, Mukta Begum, 22, and their seven-year-old daughter Lima, when they suddenly fell on the waterlogged street around 10:00pm, shows a CCTV footage of the area.

Despite the presence of stranded commuters and onlookers, only Anik, a 20-year-old autorickshaw driver, attempted a rescue, initially believing the family had accidentally fallen into a ditch.  Anik, too, met the same fate.

In his final moments, the youth  managed to move baby Hossain a short distance by pushing him from his father's grasp, sacrificing his life while doing so.

"After Anik pushed the baby away, he was just floating on water for several minutes, but no one dared to touch the child."

The family is still shell-shocked at the tragic death of Hossain’s father, mother and elder sister. This photo was taken in Jhilpar slum. PHOTO: STAR

"Then, Arif, the child's maternal uncle, who rushed to the scene from the opposite side of the road after hearing about the accident, rescued Hossain from the water," Iqbal, a cousin of the deceased Anik and also a witness, told The Daily Star yesterday.

The child's uncle took him back to the nearby Jhilpar slum where he lived, but then went back to the site in a desperate attempt to recover the bodies of Mizanur, Mukta, and Lima. He refused to acknowledge that the three had already passed away by then.

Even though baby Hossain required immediate medical attention as his life was still in danger, no one wanted to take him to the hospital passing the waterlogged streets.

Then, hijras Parboty Roy, Brishty Roy, and Amina Khatun took the matter upon themselves and took the injured Hossain to Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute, and later to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

About the incident, Parboty Roy told The Daily Star that they were at home during the rain. At one point, they heard a ruckus and came out of the house to find that some people had died, and a child was rescued.

"When the child was brought to our slum, we saw blisters on his body and understood he required immediate medical attention. But no one wanted to take the trouble, so we stepped in," Parboty said.

The doctors discharged Hossain from DMCH yesterday morning after the primary treatment, said Bacchu Mia, inspector at DMCH Police Outpost.

He said Hossain was handed over to his grandparents.

The deceased Mizanur's village home is in Jhalakathi. He used to make a living by selling juice and jhalmuri in front of Mirpur zoo. He lived with his family in a slum near the Botanical Garden.

Sanwar Sheikh, grandfather of Hossain, told The Daily Star that Mizanur returned to Dhaka with his family from Jhalakathi on Thursday morning. Then he went to his in-laws' house in Jhilpar slum and was returning home when tragedy struck.

Sanwar said they would take Hossain back to Jhalakathi to look after him and would take the bodies of his deceased family members to their Jhalakathi home for burial.