Five members of a family, including a child, sustained burn injuries in a gas cylinder explosion caused by a leak at a house in the Kagojitola area under Sutrapur Police Station in Old Dhaka. The incident occurred around 1:00 am on Thursday (July 10).
The injured were rescued and taken to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery around 3:30 am.
The victims have been identified as Mohammad Rokon (14), Mohammad Tamim (12), Mohammad Ripon (35), Chandni Akter (28), and Ayesha (1).
Their neighbour, Zakir Hossain, who rushed them to the hospital, told Jago News that the explosion occurred suddenly due to a gas leak on the ground floor of the house, leaving five members of the same family severely burnt. He said they were later rescued and taken to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery.
He added that the family had recently moved into the house as new tenants. The explosion happened while they were asleep, following a loud bang from the gas cylinder. Among the injured, Ripon is a van puller by profession.
Dr Shawon Bin Rahman, Resident Medical Officer of the institute, told Jago News that 60 percent of Ripon’s body, 60 percent of Rokon’s, 42 percent of Tamim’s, 45 percent of Chandni’s, and 63 percent of baby Ayesha’s body were burnt. All of them have been admitted to the High Dependency Unit (HDU), and their conditions are reported to be critical.