Rescuers standing among the rubble after an explosion at a market in Dhaka
At least seven people were killed and dozens injured in an explosion in the Bangladesh capital on Sunday. But officials could not ascertain the nature of the blast that caused damage to vehicles and nearby buildings, the police and fire department said.
Faislur Rahman, an official of the fire control room, said the blast took place in the evening at a building in Dhaka’s Moghbazar area and rescue workers rushed to the spot. Rahman said at least seven buildings were damaged due to the blast.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Shafikul Islam told reporters that at least seven people were killed. He said the injured were taken to hospitals.
“Definitely, this is a major explosion. The Fire Service and Bomb Disposal Unit of the Counter Terrorism Unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police have reached the scene. Their experts are working together. They investigate the origin of the blast and the damage that followed.” We are investigating,” said Sajjad Hussain, a deputy commissioner of police in Dhaka.
Witnesses said it was a scene of destruction with fragments of glass and broken concrete on the streets. Witnesses said two passenger buses were badly damaged outside the building where the blast took place.
“A ball of fire went up on my head. Everything became dark and foggy with the sound. Glass pieces started raining from above. If I hadn’t used it (a folder bag) as a cover, I would have been under pieces of glass. Allah saved me from them,” said Omar Sani, who was at the scene of the blast.
“Then the buses collided with each other, and one got crushed. One person came out of that damage. He was in very bad shape. We brought the other injured here. We found four people, including a child, at one place… the child died due to the impact. I brought the child to the hospital,” he said.
Ektar TV stations in Dhaka said 10 of the injured were in critical condition, of whom about 50 had been taken to hospitals.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion, but the main building where the explosion took place contained a fast food shop. The report said that a faulty gas line or use of a gas cylinder in the food shop could have been the reason for the explosion.
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