70-year-old woman dies in house fire

A 70-year-old woman died in a house fire in Rajnagar upazila of Moulvibazar early yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Noorjahan Begum of Kadamhata village. Noorjahan lived in a tin-roofed mud house with her son, Abul Hossain Mia, his wife, and their children, according to Abdus Shalek, officer-in-charge (OC) of Rajnagar Police Station.

Firefighters of the Rajnagar Upazila Fire Station arrived at the scene shortly after the fire broke out around 5:00am, said Station Officer Ali Hossain. They extinguished the flames within approximately 30 minutes, but the house was completely destroyed, he added.

While other family members managed to get out, Noorjahan was unable to escape the blaze as she was ill.

Fire officials suspected smoke inhalation as the cause of death.

The fire reportedly caused an estimated loss of Tk 4 lakh and the cause of the fire can be determined after investigation, said the OC.