Mall fire in Bangladesh kills 1: thousands flee

A huge fire broke out in a shopping mall in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh earlier today and thousands of shoppers were sent running for the exits as the top floor burned. One person died and about 20 were treated at a hospital for various types of injuries, including those sustained when trying to leave the building with thousands of people at the same time.

It is thought that some shoppers are still trapped inside in the Bashundhara City shopping centre, but the exact number is still not known.

There were estimated to be about 10,000 people inside the building when it caught fire at about 1:45pm local time.
The fire broke out on the top floor, where the food court is located, which made the flames difficult to reach because the building is 20 stories high.
The mall opened five years ago and is the largest shopping mall in South Asia.