Man who went to Saudi Arabia on loans dies buried under soil, uncertainty over bringing back body

Photo: Collected

Ismail Hossain, 40, of Barguna had gone to Saudi Arabia after borrowing Tk 5 lakh to end the financial hardship of his poor family. That dream of bringing smiles to his family’s faces was never fulfilled. He died after being buried under soil while at work in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Thursday. Now the family has fallen into a financial crisis even in bringing the body back home.

The deceased Ismail was the eldest son of Amjad Hossain of ward 4 of Badarkhali union in Barguna Sadar upazila. He was the eldest of three brothers. Having failed to get the desired job after completing his studies in the country, he went to Saudi Arabia on a labour visa on 5 January 2025 in the hope of financial solvency for his family.

After remaining unemployed there for some time, Ismail joined work under a Chinese company in the Riyadh airport area through a relative. Although the family’s want eased somewhat after he got the job, he could not fully repay the loan taken for going abroad.

At around 3:00pm Bangladesh time on Thursday, while he was working in a deep pit of a pipeline in the Riyadh airport area, the soil suddenly caved in, burying him, and he died on the spot. The news of the accident reached the family at around 5:00pm.

On receiving the news of Ismail’s death, his mother is fainting repeatedly and his elderly father has been left speechless. His wife Sonia Begum is weeping after losing her husband. They were married eight years ago; they have a four-year-old son.

Sonia Begum said she used to talk to him every morning, and did so on Thursday morning too. He had said he would call again at noon. As no call came even when noon turned into afternoon, she phoned his colleagues; at around 4:00pm they told her Ismail had met with an accident.

She further said people there are saying it will take around Tk 3 lakh to bring the body home, but it is not possible for them to pay so much money in a family of want. She appealed to the government to arrange for her husband’s body to be brought back to the country.

Ismail’s father Amjad Hossain said Ismail was the eldest of his three sons; he had gone abroad on borrowed money and wanted to earn and bring a little smile to their faces, but everything ended under the soil.

He further said he now does not even have the money in hand to bring his son’s body home; he is hearing that it will take around Tk 3 lakh more to bring the body. He made an earnest appeal to the government so that he can bring his son’s body home one last time and bury it on his own homestead.