Seven die in Chattogram 'gas line explosion'

At least seven people have died in an explosion in a house in Chattogram’s Patharghata area, according to police.

The incident took place on the ground floor of a building in Patharghata Brick Field Road on Sunday morning, said Kotwali Police Station OC Md Mohsin.

Eight others are injured in the incident and they have been sent to Chattogram Medical College Hospital for treatment.

“It seems to be a gas pipeline explosion,” Mohsin said, citing firemen.

"We do not know the details yet."

However, the authorities could not immediately identify the bodies of the victims.

Pedestrians also suffered injuries after the outer walls of the building collapsed during the explosion. A shop just across from the building was also damaged in the blast, bdnews24.com reports.

The gas riser of the building is located beside the boundary wall at the bottom of the structure where the explosion occurred, Purnachandra Mutsuddi, deputy director of Chattogram Fire Service and Civil Defence, said.

“Maybe there was a problem with the gas riser. The explosion might have been triggered by cooking activities in the morning or from a discarded cigarette butt.”

The explosion shook up the entire building, said third-floor resident and school teacher Anjan Kanti Das, adding that his windows were shattered while items in his house fell on the floor.

“The fragments of the boundary walls hit pedestrians during the explosion. We have sent quite a few people to the hospital, including pedestrians,” said Ismail Bali, councillor of Patharghata's ward No. 34.