Lost everything in fire, yet missed no work: The quiet resilience of Korail's workers
Korail slum is also home to hundreds of hawkers, rickshaw pullers, van operators and delivery drivers
Korail slum is home to the people who keep Dhaka's most affluent neighbourhoods moving, the workforce behind Mohakhali, Banani, and Gulshan's homes, offices, kitchens and shops. After the fire that destroyed more than 1,500 houses, their livelihoods now stand fragile.
One of them is Mohammad Mostafa, a delivery worker at Kohinoor Chemical Company. His tiny, one-room, shabby, makeshift house at Boubazar burned down completely. But the morning after the fire, he tied up his trousers, got onto his delivery van, and headed out to Karwan Bazar.
"If I don't work, there will be no food on my plate," he told TBS.
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Despite his own loss, Mostafa continued delivering goods; the income that keeps his family fed day to day. His company has offered some emergency support, and he recalled how local political leaders stayed with the victims throughout the night.
Having lost everything except his determination to keep working, Mostafa now has one appeal: he urges the government to stand beside the fire-affected families in this time of hardship.
But Mostafa's story is only one thread in the vast labour network Korail sustains.
A study shows a significant share of Korail's residents work as housemaids, cleaners, cooks, drivers and security guards in the apartments of Gulshan and Banani. Every morning, long before the city wakes, they climb onto tiny paddleboats to cross the Gulshan Lake or walk through the narrow T&T road to reach the destinations where they sweep floors, cook breakfast or guard apartments.
The fire left many of them without clothes, electricity or even utensils. Yet most reported to work the next morning. In the informal sector, where a single day's absence can mean replacement, they had little choice.
Korail is also home to hundreds of hawkers, rickshaw pullers, van operators and delivery drivers.
Like Mostafa, many returned to the streets immediately after the fire, even with no home to return to at night. Their daily earnings are the sole buffer between survival and hunger.
A large portion of residents are garment workers and factory helpers, commuting to RMG factories in Mohakhali and Tejgaon. Their rooms, makeshift shabby tin-sheds rented for Tk3,000–5,000, hold their most valuable possessions: certificates, ID cards, freezes, televisions, etc. Many of these were burned in the fire.
Then there are Korail's small entrepreneurs – tea stall owners, tailoring shop keepers, street food vendors, mobile repairmen, grocers, etc. Most of them stocked goods on credit. The fire did not just burn their homes; it wiped out their entire business inventories within minutes. With no savings or insurance, many fear they cannot reopen without emergency financial support.
Daily wage earners, such as construction workers, loaders, masons and helpers form another large segment. They work in Gulshan and Banani's construction sites, earning Tk500-800 a day. Many lost tools in the blaze.
Among Korail's youth are students like Mujahid, an SSC candidate who lived with his family in a 13-by-14-foot room rented for Tk3,500.
Korail's residents are bound together by necessity, resilience, and the slim promise of a better future. The fire may have destroyed their homes and belongings, but it has not broken their spirit. From delivery workers like Mostafa to housemaids, rickshaw pullers, garment workers, small entrepreneurs, and students, life goes on – driven by the urgent need to earn, feed families, and hold onto hope.
Yet, their struggle also highlights a stark truth: survival alone is not enough. Without government support, structured rehabilitation, or access to secure housing, these workers remain at the mercy of daily misfortune.
