Fire in a container warehouse in Bangladesh: many dead
Firefighters are dealing with the fire that broke out at a warehouse in Sitakunda, southeast Bangladesh.
© AP
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
At least 49 people have been killed and more than 300 injured in a fire that triggered a massive chemical explosion at a container depot in Sitakunda, Bangladesh, officials said on Sunday (June 5th).
Advertising
Read more
A worsening of the balance sheet is to be feared, some injured being in critical condition.
Volunteer rescuers, sometimes wearing only flip-flops, extract corpses from the charred, debris-strewn dump, and say there are still some left inside.
The fire broke out at around 9:30 p.m. Saturday (3:30 p.m. GMT) at a private warehouse in Sitakunda, about 40 kilometers from the major port of Chittagong in the southeast of the country.
Hundreds of firefighters rushed to the scene to put it out, but an hour after the disaster broke out, several containers of chemicals exploded, the fire services said.
Several people are still missing, including journalists who were covering the fire live.
According to Chittagong Regional Police Chief Anwar Hossain
"the death toll is expected to rise as some of the injured are in critical condition
".
The gigantic explosion shook buildings several kilometers away, witnesses said.
600 employees
The deposit contained hydrogen peroxide, a chemical with multiple industrial uses.
It employed about 600 people, said its director, Mujibur Rahman, who said he did not know the origin of the fire.
Mominur Rahman, the chief administrator of the Chittagong district, announced the opening of an investigation.
He also told AFP that about 200 soldiers were called in as reinforcements, in particular to prevent chemicals from flowing into the sea. Mr. Rahman said that the depot also contained clothes worth millions of dollars which were to be exported to Western countries.
Around 90% of Bangladesh's approximately $100 billion in annual trade passes through Chittagong.
This major port has been experiencing a resurgence of activity since the end of last year thanks to the global economic recovery from the pandemic.
Fires are frequent
in Bangladesh, where safety standards are poorly respected.
(
with
AFP
)
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_EN
Bangladeshi