Several people have been killed and over a hundred more injured after a fire broke out at the BM Inland Container Depot in south-eastern Bangladesh late Saturday night. The depot which was situated at Chittagong Seaport, the country’s main seaport was said to have caught on fire after a chemical-filled container exploded. The fire went on spreading after several explosions took place after the initial blast. As of this report on Sunday, firefighters are working to manage the fire.
It has been reported by the General Director of Fire Service and Civil Defence in Bangladesh that 15 firefighters have suffered burns and five more have been killed by the fire. A local civil surgeon has commented that there was the possibility that the death toll could rise after reports have shown that the fire had claimed 38 individuals. Bangladesh is no stranger to industrial disasters. Numerous citizens have been killed at work either by factories igniting or collapsing on the workers, or the inadvertent entrapment of industry workers which occurred in 2012 and killed about 117 people. The collapse of a garment factory in 2013, was one of the worst industrial accidents the country has suffered. It killed about 1,100 workers.
In the past year, 52 people were reported dead over an unlawfully locked door. This happened at a beverage factory just on the outskirts of Dhaka. Bangladesh Prime Minister has spoken on the unfortunate incident and has commanded for sufficient medical treatment be arranged for the injured. The cause of the fire outbreak is still to be ascertained.
