A City Trembles: Dhaka’s Morning of Fear
At 10:38 a.m. local time on Friday, 21 November 2025, the ground beneath Dhaka quivered violently. What began as subtle ripples quickly escalated into a wrenching shock: the quake registered a magnitude of 5.5 to 5.7 and occurred at a shallow depth, triggering widespread alarm.
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For many Dhaka residents, it was unlike anything they had experienced. Furniture lurched off its level, hanging lights swayed, and walls groaned. One observer described how their coffee’s surface fluttered, seconds before the building walls began to bulge and creak.
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Seconds That Felt Forever
The shake lasted roughly 10–15 seconds, though some reports indicate the tremor persisted for up to half a minute.
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Every moment counted:
At offices in high-rise towers, employees dived under desks or bolted for the stairs.
In densely-populated neighbourhoods of Old Dhaka and surrounding suburbs, brick-and-mortar buildings with age-worn railings and balconies began to show fissures.
In the immediate aftermath, thousands poured onto the streets — stunned, shaken, uncertain.
Damage & Loss: The Aftermath
The epicentre was near Narsingdi, just around 16–25 km from Dhaka, meaning the capital bore strong effects.
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Casualties and damage included:
At least eight people were killed and more than 300 were injured, many in Dhaka and its nearby districts.
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Buildings tilted, walls cracked, railings collapsed. In one incident in Old Dhaka, three people shopping at a butcher’s shop were killed by falling railings.
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In the industrial outskirts (such as Gazipur), a stampede of factory workers trying to evacuate left many wounded.
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Schools and university dorms were evacuated, with reports of students leaping from windows in fear of the buildings.
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Why This Mattered: Dhaka’s Risk Profile
While Bangladesh experiences seismic activity, the central region around Dhaka is less accustomed to such strong quakes.
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Key risk factors that made this event especially serious:
Dhaka is densely built up, with many older structures and minimal earthquake-resilient design.
The shallow depth of the quake amplified the shaking.
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The population is large and urban evacuation routes are congested, complicating quick escape.
A Story of One Resident: “It Felt Like the City Was Alive”
Rahul (name changed for privacy), a graphic designer working in a high-rise office in central Dhaka, recounts:
“At around 10:38, I felt the desk beneath me begin to wobble—not like a passing truck, but like the ground itself breathing. Within seconds, the lights above me swung, the walls cracked a faint sound, and everyone in the office bolted for the stairwell. From the fifth floor down, people were shouting, crying… I have never seen such fear.”
Meanwhile, in Old Dhaka, Kali Begum was at home when the quake struck:
“I heard the doorframe creak, the roof tiles above me shifted, and the house began to tilt. I grabbed my children and we ran outside. As we stood on the street, I saw bricks falling from the neighbouring building. I thought: This should not be happening in Dhaka.”
What Comes Next: Recovery and Resilience
In the hours after the quake:
Emergency control rooms were activated across Dhaka and nearby districts.
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Engineers began assessing buildings for safety—some were evacuated pending inspection for structural damage.
Authorities urged calm and warned of aftershocks, while citizens were instructed to avoid standing under loose masonry or staying indoors in unstable structures.
