On 21/7, a Bangladesh Air Force F-7 BGI fighter jet crashed into the Milestone school in the Uttara area of Dhaka, causing a massive fire. 46-year-old English teacher Maherin Chowdhury, seeing students trapped in the burning classrooms, rushed in to save them.
"Her husband called, begging her to think of their children and leave, but Maherin refused. 'They are also my children, they are burning. How can I leave them?' she said," recounted Munaf Mojib Chowdhury, Maherin's brother.
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Teacher Maherin Chowdhury. Photo: Business Standard |
Teacher Maherin Chowdhury. Photo: Business Standard
Maherin repeatedly ran into the burning classrooms to pull students out, even as her own clothes caught fire.
"I don't know exactly how many she saved, but maybe 20. She pulled the students out with her own hands," Munaf said, adding that he only learned of his sister's bravery when he arrived at the hospital and met the students Maherin had rescued.
Maherin died the same day from burns covering almost her entire body. She leaves behind her husband and two teenage sons. She was buried in her hometown in Nilphamari district, northern Bangladesh on 22/7.
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The scene of the fighter jet crash at a school in Dhaka, Bangladesh on 21/7. Photo: AFP |
The scene of the fighter jet crash at a school in Dhaka, Bangladesh on 21/7. Photo: AFP
The Bangladesh military said the fighter jet took off from a nearby airbase for a routine training mission. When a technical malfunction occurred, the pilot tried to steer the jet away from populated areas, but it ultimately crashed into the school. The pilot was among the 29 people killed.
"When the plane crashed and the fire started, everyone was trying to escape, but she ran to save others," said Khadija Akter, the school's primary section headmistress.
Thuy Lam (Reuters)
