6 Bangladeshis killed in Madina factory fire

At least six Bangladeshis were killed in a factory fire in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday night.

"A total of seven foreign workers, including six Bangladeshis, were killed in the fire at a sofa factory near Heraz Market, which is 25kms from the Madina city," read a notice issued by the Bangladesh consulate general in Jeddah on Thursday.  

The identity of five of the victims has so far been confirmed.

The deceased include Mizanur Rahman, son of Sultan Ahmed, and Md Arafat Hossain Manik, son of Sultan Ahmed, both hailing from Chattogram's Lohagara upazila.

The three other victims are: Ishak Mia, son of Jalal Ahmed, Abdul Aziz, son of Kabir Ahmed, and Md Rafiq Uddin, son of Abu Gafur, all three hailing from Kutubjam in Maheshkhali of Cox's Bazar, according to a statement issued by the Bangladesh embassy in Saudi Arabia.

In the notice, the embassy said that it is trying to learn the identity of the sixth Bangladeshi victim.

The bodies were kept at the morgue of King Fahad Hospital in Madina.

The Bangladesh Consulate in Jeddah is working to repatriate the bodies and realise compensation.

The local fire department could not confirm the origin of the fire.

The Bangladesh labour counsellor at the consulate in Jeddah has been instructed to collect details of the incident, contact the local police, administration and hospital authorities so that the bodies can be repatriated at the soonest possible time.

Bangladesh Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Mohammad Javed Patwary expressed deep condolence at the death of the Bangladeshi workers.

"Bangladesh embassy is looking into whether the victims will get compensation or not," added the consulate notice.

Currently, around 22 lakh Bangladeshi migrants work in Saudi Arabia, the largest destinations of overseas jobs, according to an unofficial estimate.