3 die after balcony of under-construction building collapses in Jessore

Three people, including two engineers, were killed when the fifth-floor balcony of an under-construction building collapsed in Jashore. 

The deceased were identified as Engineer Mizanur Rahman (35), Engineer Azizul Islam and worker Nuru Mia (45).

The incident took place at around 12 noon on Tuesday at a multi-storey building under construction by Building for Future Limited Company at Iqbal Manzil in Circuit Housepara in Jashore city. 

The company is a family-run business of the landowners.

The municipal authorities have said they will investigate the incident and take action.

Locals alleged that the accident occurred due to the use of low-quality construction materials and lack of safety measures.

It is learnt that Project Engineer Mizanur Rahman (35) and Site Engineer Azizur Rahman (35) were explaining the work to subcontractor cum head mason Nuru Mia (45) standing on the fifth-floor balcony of the building around 12 noon on Tuesday. Suddenly, the balcony collapsed and fell down.

Hearing a loud noise, locals came and rescued them and took them to Jessore General Hospital where the doctor on duty declared all three dead.

Local resident District Jubo Dal convener Tamal Ahmed said, "Suddenly, I heard a loud noise and came out of my house. When I arrived, three people were lying in a bloody state. Then I rescued them and sent them to the hospital. I heard that all three of them died.”

“The accident mainly occurred due to the lack of safety measures required for construction work,” he added.

Rashed Khan, the recently resigned convener of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, arrived at the scene after receiving the news. 

He said that the accident occurred due to the use of low-quality construction materials and lack of safety measures. 

“Very thin rods were used in the collapsed balcony. The roof rods were not even connected to the balcony rods. This is a murder,” said Rahed.

No representative of the construction company Building for Future was found at the scene after the accident.

Jashore Municipality Executive Engineer SM Sharif Hasan said, "We have sent a delegation to the spot after hearing the news of the accident. If any defects are found in the construction, necessary action will be taken against the building owner." 

Meanwhile, Jashore Kotwali Police Station OC Abul Hasnat visited the spot. 

He said, “An autopsy for the deceased will be conducted and legal action will be taken if the families of the deceased file a complaint in this incident.”

According to information provided by locals, the deceased Engineer Mizanur Rahman is from Dinajpur, Engineer Azizur Rahman is from Kushtia and subcontractor cum mason Nuru Mia is from Chapainawabganj. 

The victims have been working on the construction of the building for more than five years.