United News of Bangladesh

A mild earthquake jolted Dhaka and nearby areas early Thursday (December 04), according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD). BMD reported that the 4.1-magnitude quake struck at around 6:14am, with its epicentre in Shibpur upazila of Narsingdi, about 38 kilometres northeast of the BMD Seismic Observatory and Research Centre in Agargaon.  No casualties have been reported so far. Mild earthquake jolts Dhaka, adjacent areas again The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Centre placed the epicentre 33 kilometres east-northeast of Tongi and three kilometres north of Narsingdi, at a depth of 30 kilometres. A stronger earthquake, measuring 5.7 in magnitude, had earlier shaken Dhaka and several regions on November 21, also originating from Narsingdi.  Since then, several minor tremors have been recorded across the country, most with epicentres in Narsingdi. Read more: Ceiling And Wall Cracks After An Earthquake: When To Worry

Two people who died during Friday's (November 21) earthquake in Narsingdi were laid to eternal rest at their village home in Kishoreganj district on Saturday. The deceased were identified as Delwar Hossain Ujjal, 37 and his son Omar Faruk, 12, residents of Gabtoli in Narsingdi district town. The first namaz-e-janaza of the duo was held at Jameya Kashemia Kamil Madrasah in Gabtoli area in Narsingdi on Friday midnight where additional deputy commissioner of Narsingdi Abu Taher Mohammad Samsuzzaman, BNP district unit BNP President Khairul Kabir Khokon and others were present there. Later, the bodies was taken to Hossainpur upazila of Kishoreganj district where the 2nd janaza was held and they were buried. Additional deputy commissioner of Narsingdi Abu Taher, said five people were killed in the earthquake and the local administration provided Tk 25,000 each to the family members of each deceased. Earlier on Friday, a six-storey building collapsed on the adjacent house of Delwar Hossain during an earthquake in Gabtoli area of Narsingdi district town, leaving Delwar, his son Omar and daughter Tasfia injured. Read more: Ceiling And Wall Cracks After An Earthquake: When To Worry Later, they were taken to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital from where Delwar and Omar were referred to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital. Delwar died on way to Dhaka while Omar died at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.

The death toll from the 5.7-magnitude earthquake that struck Dhaka and several other parts of the country on Friday morning (November 21) rose to 10. Of them, four were killed in Dhaka, five in Narsingdi district, the epic centre of the earthquake, and one in Narayanganj. Thirteen people were injured after the railing of a building collapsed on them in the Koshaituli area of Armanitola, said Mallik Ahsan Uddin Sami, deputy commissioner of the DMP’s Lalbagh Division. They were taken to Sir Salimullah Medical College (Mitford) Hospital, where physicians declared three of them dead on arrival, said Shahjahan Sikder, deputy assistant director of the Fire Service and Civil Defence (FSCD) headquarters media cell. The deceased were identified as Abdur Rahim, 47, his son Abdul Aziz Rimon, and medical student Rafiul Islam Rafi. The remaining injured are receiving treatment at the hospital, he added. Separately, at least 18 people were brought to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) from different parts of the capital following the quake. Md Faruk, in-charge of the DMCH police outpost, said the injured were being treated at the Emergency Department and warned that the toll could rise. Meanwhile, multiple fire service units in Dhaka and nearby areas responded to a series of structural scare alerts and minor incidents. Read more: Bangladesh jolted awake by huge tremor Friday morning In Armanitola’s Kasaituli area, bricks and plaster fell from the wall and cornice of an eight-storey building above a beef shop, injuring customers and passers-by. Locals rushed the victims to Mitford Hospital before fire service personnel arrived. In Khilgaon, a passer-by was injured when a brick fell from an under-construction building onto a nearby two-storey structure. Locals assisted the victim, and fire service officials said no intervention was required. Two units from Baridhara Fire Station were deployed after a fire broke out at a residence in Block-F, Road-5. The cause of the blaze is yet to be determined. Reports of leaning buildings were also received from Sutrapur’s Swamibagh and Kalabagan’s Abedkhali Road, prompting further unit deployments. Officials later confirmed the structures were intact, saying residents had raised the alarm out of fear. Casualties and injuries were also reported from other districts, including Gazipur and Narsingdi. In Narsingdi, five people, including a child, were killed and scores injured during the earthquake in Narsingdi Sadar, Palash and Shibpur upazilas on Friday morning. The deceased were Kazam Ali, 70, and Nasir Uddin, 50, of Malita and Danga villages respectively under Palash upazila, Nasir Uddin , 50 of the same village, Omar Faruk, 10, son of Delwar Hossain Ujjal in the Gabtali area of Sadar upazila, and Forkan Mia, 40, of Achhkina village under Shibpur upazila.   Of them, Kazam died on the spot when a wall collapsed on him while sleeping on bed at his house during the earthquake, said family members.  Nasir died of cardiac arrest while running after coming out the house during the quake, said Monir Hossain, officer-in-charge of Palash Police Station. Omar and his father Ujjal sustained severe injuries when a wall collapsed on them in the Gabtali area. They were rushed to the DMCH where physicians declared Omar dead on arrival, said Md Faruk, in-charge of the hospital police camp. Omar was a student at a Hefz madrasa in the area. The father, an office assistant at the National Housing Authority, is undergoing treatment at the Intensive Care Unit of the DMCH. Omar’s body has been kept at the hospital morgue, Md Faruk confirmed. Besides, Forkan was critically injured after he fell off a tree while cutting its branches during the quake. Earthquake: Japan stands in solidarity with Bangladesh Initially, he was taken to the district Sadar hospital but succumbed to his injuries on way to Dhaka, said Shibpur Upazila Nirbahi Officer Farzana Yeasmin.     More than 100 others were injured in Narsingdi, most of them hurt while rushing out of their homes, witnesses said. In Narayanganj, a one-year-old girl was killed and two women, including her mother, were injured when a wall collapsed during an earthquake in Rupganj upazila of Narayanganj. Deceased Fatema was daughter of Abdul Haque of Islambagh village under Golakandail Union. According to locals, Fatema’s mother, Kulsum Begum, was walking along the road with the child in her arms when tremors began around 10:38am. As they reached the Islambagh canal No-5 area, a nearby wall suddenly gave way and fell on them, leaving Fatema dead on the spot. Residents rushed to the scene and recovered the child’s body from beneath the debris. Kulsum Begum and another woman named Jesmin Begum sustained injuries and were admitted to a local hospital for treatment, said Mokhlesur Rahman, inspector at Bhulta police outpost. They are receiving treatment at Narsingdi Sadar Hospital, according to Resident Medical Officer Farida Parvin. In Gazipur, over a hundred garment workers were injured as they hurried down from several factories in Tongi, Gazipur Sadar and Sreepur during the tremor. Authorities have since closed the factories to bring the situation under control. Read more: Post-Earthquake Cautions: Do’s & Don’ts