A Bangladesh Air Force training jet crashed into a school building in Dhaka’s Uttara area on Monday, killing at least 19 people, most of them children, and injuring many others.
The jet, a Chinese-made F-7 BGI, took off at 1:06 pm and crashed shortly after into the Milestone School and College campus. It hit a four-storey building and immediately caught fire.
Brigadier General Zahed Kamal, head of the Fire Service, said 19 bodies were found inside the school. At least 50 others were seriously injured.
Md Sayedur Rahman, a government official, said 72 people were taken to hospitals with burns and other injuries. Many of the injured were students. They are being treated at the Combined Military Hospital, Dhaka Medical College, and the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery.
Doctors said eight injured people are in critical condition. The jet’s pilot, Flight Lieutenant Mohammad Towkir Islam, is in the ICU at the military hospital.
A witness, Fahim Hossain, a student, said the jet crashed just 10 feet in front of him during classes for younger children.
After the crash, fire trucks, ambulances, and Air Force helicopters rushed to the scene. Many wounded were taken away in ambulances, and rescue teams continued to search the site.
The government has announced a one-day mourning on July 22. Flags will fly at half-mast across Bangladesh and in its foreign missions.
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also shared his condolences and offered help to Bangladesh.
“We are shocked and saddened,” Modi said. India stands with Bangladesh during this painful time.”
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