Two dead, seven injured in Narayanganj gas pipeline blast

A gas pipeline explosion has killed two people and injured seven others in Narayanganj.

The accident took place in the predawn hours of Monday in Sawghat neighbourhood, according to Rafiqul Haque, an inspector of Bhulta Police Outpost.

The dead were identified as Shamim, 30, and Helal Biswas Rakib, 25. The injured are Tariqul Islam, Liaquat Ali, Hazrat Ali, Arif, Anowar Hossain, Faruk Mia and Arifur Rahman.

All the dead and injured are the workers of Next Accessories Limited, a local garment accessories factory and had rented the house together, says  a bdnews24 report.

There was a big bang at around 3:00am on the ground floor of the three-storey house owned by Rabeya Akhter Mili, a lawyer, according to local residents.

The blasts blew the walls off the house, creating panic in the neighbourhood on the night of Shab-e-Barat, they said.

Later, the locals rescued six injured with severe burn injuries and took them to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH). Among them, Shamim and Helal died at the hospital, according to police.

Three others injured were taken to a local clinic.

“It is believed that the house was illegally connected to an overpressure gas pipeline. The factories and mills were shut down on the night of Shab-e-Barat, leading to mount the gas pressure. A leakage from the gas pipeline resulted in the blast,” said the inspector.

The explosion took place at the house in the morning when someone went to light the gas stove and later the fire engulfed the house, said Abdul Mannan, chief of Kanchan Fire Service Station at Rupganj.

Firefighters doused the flames.