19 shops gutted in Sylhet

A devastating fire gutted at least 19 shops in the city's Laldighirpar market yesterday morning.
The fire damaged goods worth Tk 2 crore, the shopkeepers claimed.
The businessmen said they had a good stock of clothes as the Eid shopping gained momentum in the last few days. Besides a few shoe stores, the market was full of readymade garments.
A number victims said, on getting the news of the fire they rushed to the market after Fazr prayers and found the whole market in huge flames.
The firefighters brought the fire under control in an hour-long struggle, they informed.
All the 19 shops in two rows were gutted almost totally, Fire Brigade sources said adding they could save goods worth Tk 30 lakh while valuables worth Tk 75 lakh had been burnt to ashes in the devastating fire.
Assistant Director of Fire Service Parimal Chanda Kundu said the fire might have been caused by a short circuit of electricity.
Owner of Aziz Fashion, a big clothe store, Abdul Aziz said that all his five shops on the lane-1 and lane-2 were completely destroyed.
"I had stored readymade garments of different types worth Tk 40 lakh a head of Eid", he lamented.
On the other hand, a number of shop owners claimed that local criminals looted at least 10 shops during the fire.
Salesman of Gulzar Shoe store Ahmed Hossain said, "We found the shutters cut and locks broken in the morning while some shoes left scattered in front of the shop".