18 die so far in N’ganj mosque blasts

The death toll from the Narayanganj mosque blast rose to 18 Saturday, report agencies.

Another 20 people are battling for their lives at the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka after near-simultaneous blasts of six air-conditioners during prayers at the Baitul Salat mosque on Friday night.

The victims were identified 'Jobayer', his brother 'Sabbir'21, 'Russel' as 'Rifat', 'Zubair', Humayun Kabir, Mostafa Kamal, 'Ibrahim', 'Jewel', 'Sabbir', Delowar Hossain, 'Jalam', Junayed' and Kuddus Bepari.

The identities of other deceased are yet to be disclosed.

The child, 'Jewel', had burns on 95 per cent of his body, according to the institute's Assistant Director Dr Hussain Imam.

As many as 37 of the victims, all of who have reportedly suffered burns on 30 per cent of their bodies.

More than 50 Muslim worshippers sustained burn injuries.

The Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence, state gas transmission and distribution agency Titas and the district administration of Narayanganj each formed a committee to investigate the explosions.

The authorities also believe gas that accumulated inside the mosque after pipeline leaks may have triggered the blasts.

Locals said the incident took place around 8:45 pm at Baitus Salam Mosque when the devotees had just finished their prayers. An air conditioner went off and sparked a fire inside the mosque. Later, the remaining six ACs exploded there, leaving the 40 devotees injured.

Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd has formed a 5-member committee to investigate whether gas leakage in pipelines sparked fire and subsequent AC blasts at a mosque in Narayanganj.

A press release of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources saidthe committee, headed by Titas Gas general manager Abdul Wahab, was asked to submit its report within 5 working days.