Six burnt as water tank explodes in Dhaka's Dhanmondi

A water tank has exploded in capital city Dhaka's Dhanmondi, burning six, including a woman.

The explosion occurred at 10:30am on Wednesday when labourers were repairing it, police said.

The victims have been taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital’s burns unit.

They have been identified as Shirin Akhter, 27, Saddam Hossain, 30, Abed Ali, 45, Abdur Razzak ,23, Md Masum Ali, 24, and Abdur Razzak, 50.

The officer-in-charge of Dhanmondi Police Station, Helal Uddin, told bdnews24.com the labourers had been repairing the tank for three days.

“There was no water in the tank. The cause of the explosion has not been identified," he said. One of the victims is the building’s security guard, he added.

DMCH burns unit doctor Partha Shankar Pal said most of the victims had suffered 20 to 38 percent burns on their bodies.

Masum suffered 49 percent burns.

When asked what could have caused the explosion, Fire Service control room official Md Enayet Hossain said, “The labourers were using electric lights to work on the tank."

"It is possible that excess gas may have caused the explosion when a light bulb burst.”