70 houses gutted

At least 70 houses were gutted in a fire at Garerdanga village in Boda upazila of Panchagarh district on Sunday. Locals said the fire originated from an electric short circuit of one Shafiqul Islam's house around 11:00am and soon engulfed the adjoining houses. On information, firefighters rushed to the spot and brought the blaze under control after two and a half hours of efforts. The affected house owners claimed that the loss caused by the fire could go up to Tk 50 lakh.