The fire that broke out at Khawaja Tower in Dhaka’s Mohakhali is causing internet disruption across Bangladesh as many data centres in the building were damaged in the blaze.
The shutdown of some IIGs (International Internet Gateways) has slowed down the internet speed.
Numerous citizens have encountered difficulties when trying to access various social media platforms, such as Facebook, Messenger and WhatsApp.
Emdadul Haque, president of the Internet Service Provider Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB) said another data centre named Dhakacolo is at risk. “If it burns, it will be a big loss.”
“Max Hub, Amra Networks, Earthnet and Windstream IIG were gutted in the fire at Khawaja Tower. As a result, we have already lost 70-80% of our bandwidth. It is not possible to say when the internet speed will be normal.”
Meanwhile, some 20-25 people are feared to be trapped inside the Khawaja Tower.
Witnesses say the trapped people were standing on the balconies of different floors of the building, turning on the lights of their mobile phones and pleading for help.
Meanwhile, many people were seen coming down from the highrise with the help of ropes, while others were seen breaking windows to escape the fire.
The fire broke out on the 13th floor of the Khawaja Tower at around 4:58pm.
Eleven units of fire service have been working to douse the blaze since 5:07pm, Fire Service and Civil Defence Media Wing Officer Shahjahan Shikder.
Members of the Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy and Bangladesh Air Force have also joined the operation.
Internet Khawaja Tower fire
Source: https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/dhaka/329149/khawaja-tower-fire-leads-to-internet-disruption
