No fewer than 19 people have died, and more than 100 were injured after a Bangladeshi air force training jet crashed into a school campus in the capital, Dhaka.
Footage from Milestone School and College in Uttara’s northern suburb shows a massive fire and a towering column of smoke.
The armed services confirmed that one of their planes was involved in the crash and that the pilot was killed.
A doctor from the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery informed reporters that more than 50 persons, including children and adults, were rushed to the hospital with burn injuries.
The death toll may potentially grow, as official sources provide varying figures for how many people have died and been injured.
Rezaul Islam, a college teacher, told BBC Bangla that he witnessed the plane “directly” hitting the building.
Another teacher, Masud Tarik, told Reuters that he heard an explosion and looked back to see just flames and smoke. “There were many guardians and children here.”
A student stated that he witnessed the plane strike the building “right in front of my eyes”.
The school’s students range in age from four to eighteen.
A statement from the military said, “Bangladesh Air Force’s F-7 BGI training aircraft crashed in Uttara. The aircraft took off at 13:06 (0706 GMT).”
The country’s fire service confirmed on social media that nine units and six ambulances were on the site.
Images from the area show scores of emergency workers searching through scorched rubble for survivors.
In one photo, firefighters are bringing a body out of the structure.
Members of the public may also be seen standing on the tops of nearby buildings, watching.
Muhammad Yunus, the leader of Bangladesh’s interim administration, stated “necessary measures” would be taken to investigate the cause of the incident and “ensure all kinds of assistance”.
“This is a moment of deep sorrow for the nation. I wish the injured a speedy recovery and instruct all authorities, including the hospitals concerned, to deal with the situation with utmost importance,” he said in a post on X.
Bangladesh has declared a day of mourning on Tuesday, when the national flag will be flown at half-mast throughout the country.
