Bangladesh News

One of the wounded office executives of Hotel Orchard Plaza in the city succumbed to his injuries a day after several blasts shook the hotel.

Condition of many others injured in the Sunday night blasts, including two foreign nationals, was stated to be critical.

Meanwhile, intelligence agency personnel and law enforcers are still unsure about what caused the blasts.

Inspector General of Police Nur Mohammad yesterday said a three-member committee, comprising officials from Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and police headquarters, was formed to probe the incident.

DMP Commissioner Naim Ahmed, however, was confident that it was not a subversive act as they did not find any traces of explosives at the scene.

Hotel executive Ali Azam died at 3:30pm at City Hospital in Mohammadpur. Ninety percent of his body was burnt in one of the explosions at the hotel.

His colleague Shawkat Alam said, “Ali Azam was hurt in the second blasts when he and hotel employees Mir Hossain and Moin went to search rooms on the 7th floor.”

Condition of Mir Hossain and Moin was stated to be critical as they too were severely burnt.

City Hospital sources said the condition of injured Sri Lankan national Samantha Lake was grave.

Sri Lankan ambassador to Dhaka visited the hospital around 11:00am yesterday and enquired doctors about Samantha Lake’s condition.

A number of others injured Sunday night were having treatment at different hospitals and clinics in the city.

Personnel from different law enforcement and intelligence agencies searched the hotel, including luggage of boarders at different rooms. They let boarders check out yesterday morning after questioning them.

The hotel had seven Indian, three Sri Lankan, three Bangladeshi and a Singapore national Sunday night.

At least 45 people, including two foreign nationals, several law enforcers and pedestrians, were injured following a series of blasts inside the multi-storied hotel at Naya Paltan Sunday night.