Fire broke out at the central market “Farovon” in Bokhtar, the capital of Khatlon province, yesterday night. Twelve people were injured; one of them is in critical condition.
A source within the Khatlon fire department says the signal about the fire was received by the duty officer at 10:22 pm. According to him, more than twenty fire-fighting crews were sent to the fire scene.
Asia-Plus’s reporter was at the scene of the fire until two o'clock in the morning. When he came to the fire scene at 7:00 am, firefighters were still working: smoke and fire were still visible in some parts of the market.
Meanwhile, twelve people were injured; one of them is in critical condition.
A source within the Bokhtar health department says a 52-year-old entrepreneur Mahmad Safarov was seriously injured. “He was badly burned in the fire, suffering burns on 90 percent of his body,” said the source. “Safarov was admitted to the regional central hospital.”
According to him, eleven more people received burns, but not so serious. “Nine of them were taken to the hospital; eight of them were allowed to go home after receiving first aid,” the source added.
A source within the Bokhtar administration says a special commission has been set up to investigate the cause of the fire and assess the actual damage caused to the market by the fire.
It is to be noted that many cases of fires have been reported in various regions in recent years. The authorities have said that some of the fires were caused by non-compliance with fire safety. Meanwhile, merchants said that it could not be ruled out that in some cases arson was to blame for fires.
