Mahtab’s Fight Ends, Seventh grader Joins His Friends in Paradise

13-year-old Mahtab Uddin Bhuiyan, a seventh-grade student at Milestone School and College in Uttara, Dhaka, succumbed to injuries on Thursday (24 July) at 1:50 pm in the Intensive Care Unit of the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute. Mahtab had been battling for his life for four days following a Bangladesh Air Force fighter jet crash on the school campus on Monday (21 July). Dr. Nasir Uddin, director of the institute, confirmed that Mahtab suffered burns over 85% of his body, including his windpipe, leading to his critical condition.

Mahtab’s death brings the number of fatalities at the burn institute to 12, with the total death toll from the crash reaching at least 30, mostly children, according to hospital sources. Dozens of others remain injured, many with severe burns. Mahtab, a student in the English Medium section, was the younger of two siblings, with his elder sister Nabila studying in the tenth grade at the same school. The family, originally from Bonkut village in Debidwar Upazila, Cumilla, resided in Uttara’s Sector 13, Road 10.

Mahtab’s father, Minhaz Bhuiyan, recounted that he regularly accompanied his son to and from school. On Monday, he was at the school to pick Mahtab up when the jet crashed, causing an explosion and fire that engulfed the area. Mahtab’s uncle, Tanvir Bhuiyan, explained that Mahtab was in a second-floor classroom when the plane struck the building below, triggering a blaze. “As he ran down the stairs to escape, his body caught fire,” Tanvir said. Army personnel rescued Mahtab and rushed him to the hospital.

The tragedy has left students, parents, and the nation in profound grief, with growing anger and concern over the rising death toll. The government has announced support for the victims’ families and injured, as well as state honors for two deceased teachers, with details to be finalized soon.