Dhaka, Sept. 4 -- For burn victims survival often hinges on a race against time but for those living far from the capital in Bangladesh race is increasingly unwinnable.

Bangladesh saw 140 deaths in 26,659 fire incidents reported across the country in 2024, according to Fire Service and Civil Defence.

Access to specialised burn treatment outside Dhaka remains extremely limited, forcing critically injured patients to rely on the overburdened National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in the capital, while the actual need is even higher.

A government project to set up 100-bed burn and plastic surgery units at five major medical college hospitals - in Sylhet, Barishal, Rangpur, Rajshahi and Faridpur - was supposed to bring some changes...