1 dies, 3 injured as shell explodes during army drill in Cox’s Bazar

A soldier has died and three other personnel have been injured in a shell explosion during the Bangladesh Army’s winter exercise in Cox’s Bazar’s Ukhia Upazila.

The incident occurred when the training session in the hill tracts of the Upazila’s Monkhali area was underway on Saturday evening, Ramu Cantonment chief Brig Gen Golam Faruk told bdnews24.com.

“The blast took place around 7:30pm when the troopers were loading a shell in an anti-aircraft gun.”

Faruk said the deceased was identified as Sepoy Ibrahim Khalil Ripon, 31, and the injured were Lance Corporal Rasel Habib, Sergeant ‘Humayun’ and Sepoy Habibur Rahman.

He added that all the victims were stationed at Ramu Cantonment before the accident.

The explosion killed Ripon on the spot, he said. The three others were rushed to Cox’s Bazar Hospital.

The injured were later airlifted to Dhaka’s Combined Military Hospital by helicopter, the army official added.

Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital’s duty doctor Wahiduzzaman Murad told bdnews24.com that Habib’s condition was critical.

Ripon’s body has been kept at the hospital for autopsy, said Brig Gen Faruk.