BM Desk : On Monday, a training aircraft belonging to the Bangladesh Air Force crashed into Milestone School and College located in Uttara, Dhaka, igniting a fire that resulted in at least 20 fatalities and 171 injuries, with many victims suffering severe burns. The pilot of the fighter jet succumbed to injuries at a hospital while receiving treatment.

Following the crash of the F7 jet around 1:30 PM, army and fire service personnel quickly arrived to assist with rescue efforts, creating a wave of shock in the vicinity, according to official and medical sources.

Border guards were subsequently deployed to the devastated campus to support rescue operations and enhance security measures.

In response to the tragedy, the government has announced a one-day state of mourning for today (Tuesday).

President Muhammad Shahabuddin and Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus conveyed their “deep shock and sorrow” regarding this unfortunate event.

Leaders and political parties also conveyed their astonishment at the tragedy, their condolences for the deaths, and their sympathies for the families of the deceased. The building on the east side of the school, next to the metro-rail depot at Diabari, was struck by the plane. Classes ranging from three to eight were housed in the building.
According to an eyewitness description of the events, “Emergency-response personnel, including of Bangladesh Army and fire service, and other partner forces raced to the location and got down to performing rescue efforts,” and the air was filled with cries and screams.

Brigadier-General Muhammad Jahed Kamal, Director-General of the Fire Service and Civil Defense (FSCD), informed the media that 19 dead bodies had been retrieved from the scene up until the briefing.

The pilot of the aircraft, Flight Lieutenant Toukir Islam, who was from Chapainawabganj, also lost his life in the incident.

According to a statement from the FSCD, nine fire units from various fire stations across the capital, including Mirpur, Uttara, and Kurmitola, participated in the firefighting and rescue operations.

At least 71 individuals with serious injuries were being treated at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery. Others were taken to several hospitals in Uttara and Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Among the injured, 38 were admitted to the Burn Unit at Dhaka Medical, while others were hospitalized in Uttara, including 23 at Bangladesh Medical, 11 at Shinshin Japan Hospital, 15 at Crescent Hospital, 20 at Lubana Hospital, one at Eastwest Hospital, and eight at Mansur Ali Hospital. The burn unit at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital was being readied to treat the injured.

An emergency hotline has been established at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in response to the air-force jet crash. The government has set up a hotline for the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, which can be reached at 01949-043697.

A visibly shaken student from the college remarked that the aircraft “crashed within the compound around 1:30 PM.”

An eyewitness, Saadman Rhuhsin, who is employed at Friendship and Cooperation Recruitment, an office situated near the school, provided a detailed description of how the jet plane collided with the school building and caught fire. Exiting the campus as emergency personnel responded to the incident.

Outside the gates, anxious parents, guardians, and siblings of students waited with increasing distress, eager for updates.

The sudden influx of onlookers contributed to the disorder, complicating law enforcement’s ability to manage the situation. Members of the army and police were dispatched to control the crowd and secure the area.

According to ISPR, the pilot from the 35 squadron, 76 BAFA course, passed away while receiving treatment in the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Combined Military Hospital (CMH).

In a gesture of state mourning, the national flag will be flown at half-mast at all government, semi-government, autonomous institutions, and educational establishments nationwide today.

Furthermore, flags will be lowered at all government and private buildings, as well as at Bangladeshi missions abroad.

Special prayers will be held in all places of worship across the country for the injured and the deceased.

Chief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman was observed at the scene around 3:10 PM.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and leaders from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami also visited the hospitals.

The ISPR statement further noted that during routine training exercises, after taking off from Bangladesh Air Force Base AK Khandaker in Kurmitola, the aircraft encountered a “technical malfunction”.

“To address the situation and prevent significant casualties, the pilot made every effort to steer the aircraft away from densely populated areas towards a less populated location.”]]}}  assistant to=python codeHere’s the rewritten text in the specified JSON format.  The text has been rephrased while maintaining its original meaning and structure.

The military press release states: The Bangladesh Air Force is profoundly saddened by this unfortunate event and is fully committed to providing comprehensive medical care and assistance to those impacted. With the Chief of Air Staff currently overseas on an official trip, the Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Administration), senior Air Force officers, and rescue teams are on-site at the crash location.

A high-level investigation committee has been established by the Bangladesh Air Force to ascertain the cause of the incident.

In the aftermath of the crash, several advisers from the interim government visited the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery to check on the injured individuals.

In the afternoon, Bangladesh Nationalist Party Secretary-General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Jamaat-e-Islami Amir Shafiqur Rahman visited the hospital.

Law Adviser Asif Nazrul, Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, Industry Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan, Special Assistant to the Health and Family Welfare Ministry (with the rank of state minister) Professor Md. Sayedur Rahman, and Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam were among the interim government advisers who were in attendance at the institute.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meanwhile, expressed his deep astonishment at the plane accident in Bangladesh’s capital.

Interestingly, the Dhaka plane disaster reminds me of a terrible passenger plane catastrophe that happened at an Indian school not long ago.