Bangladesh fire: At least 43 people killed in a building fire in Dhaka

At least 43 people were killed after a fire broke out in a multi-storey building in Bangladesh, according to what the country's health minister announced.

According to local media, the fire started in a restaurant at around 22:00 local time (16:00 GMT) on Thursday in the capital, Dhaka.

75 people were rescued and dozens were taken to hospital.

The fire was brought under control after two hours, according to fire officials, and the cause is being investigated.

Bangladeshi Health Minister Samanta Lal Sen said that at least 33 people, including women and children, had been declared dead at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

At least 10 others died in the city's main burns hospital. Sen said 22 people were in critical condition.

Emergency services were called to the Katchi Bhai restaurant, which, according to the Daily Bangladesh newspaper, is located in a seven-storey building.

The complex in which the building is located also contains other restaurants in addition to many clothing and mobile phone stores.

The head of the Bangladesh Fire and Civil Defense Service, Brigadier General Min Udin, said, according to Agence France-Presse, that the fire may have been caused by a gas or stove leak.

“It was a dangerous building with gas cylinders on every floor, even on the stairs,” Brigadier General Odin told reporters.

A restaurant manager named Sohil said, according to Agence France-Presse: “We were on the sixth floor when we first saw smoke rising through the stairs.”

“Many people rushed to the top floor. We used water pipes to go down the building.

“Some of us were injured when they jumped from the top floor.”

Another survivor, Muhammad Altaf, told Reuters that he miraculously escaped the fire through a broken window.

He said two of his colleagues, who helped get people out, later died.

Fires in commercial and residential buildings are common in Bangladesh. They are often blamed for poor safety awareness and inadequate enforcement of regulations.