Gas leak didn’t spark fatal explosion in Chattogram house, says Karnaphuli inquiry

The explosion that knocked down parts of a building in Chattogram’s Patharghata, killing seven people in the process, was not triggered by a leak in the gas line, an investigation has found.

Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Limited or KGDCL Managing Director Khaiz Ahmed Mozumder disclosed the findings to bdnews24.com on Monday.

“We found that the gas line, riser and stove in the house were intact. There was no problem in the kitchen either. So, we’re sure the accident was not caused by a gas leak.”

At least 10 people were also injured in the explosion which occurred on the ground floor of a four-storey building in Patharghata’s Brick Field Road early on Sunday.

Sandhya Nath, a resident on the ground floor of the building, said the explosion happened when a matchstick was lit in a prayer room. His niece Arpita Nath was injured in the blast.

The KGDCL later formed a four-strong committee headed by General Manager (Engineering and Services) Sarwar Hossain to investigate the explosion. The committee submitted the probe report later on Sunday.

“If the explosion was triggered by a gas leak, there would have been a huge fire, but that was not the case. We learned that tea was made in the kitchen stove in the morning,” Sarwar told bdnews24.com.

The district administration and the Chattogram Metropolitan Police have also formed two separate committees to probe the fatal explosion.

"We are also working together with the other probe panels to widen the scope of the investigation,” said Mozumder.

A case over the incident has been filed at a local police station, claiming damages for negligent death.

Shahina Akter, the wife of a rickshaw-puller who died in the blast, started the case on Monday, said Kotwali Police OC Mohammad Mohsin.

However, the OC did not reveal the names of the accused citing an ongoing investigation into the incident.

But some police officers indicated the case implicates the two brothers who own the building.