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Published : 24 Feb 2026, 05:46 PM
A family’s Ramadan morning turned into a nightmare when an explosion tore through their Cumilla home before dawn, leaving two adults critically burned and a toddler among the injured. Authorities believe an illegal gas line running into the building may have caused the blast.
The incident occurred early Tuesday at a three-storey building in the Paschim Maizpara of Baldakhal. Three of the injured have been admitted to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, Dhaka.
Officers from Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Limited stated that the building was using an unauthorised gas connection, which likely led to the blast.
Amlan Kumar Dutta, an engineer at the state-owned gas distribution company, told reporters that the house had no legal connection.
"They were using an illegal line that had been disconnected recently. It appears they reconnected it, which caused the leak and subsequent explosion," he said.
The victims have been identified as Monowara, 60, identified with a single name, Jil Haq, 37, Umme Humayra, 30, and two-year-old Hurram, identified by a single name.
The burn institute’s Resident Surgeon Shawon Bin Rahman said Jil Haq and Humayra are in critical condition, having suffered burns to 54 percent and 65 percent of their bodies, respectively.
Monowara and the toddler sustained minor burns, he said.
Local residents reported being jolted awake by a deafening blast after Sehri.
The explosion was so powerful that it blew out the walls, doors, and windows of a vacant unit on the ground floor.
While Fire Service officials confirmed that the gas cylinders in the kitchen remained intact, investigators discovered two illegal pipe outlets at a corner of the building.
Pear Ahmed, the owner of the house, denied the allegations of an active illegal connection, claiming the blast might have been an act of sabotage by enemies.
He did, however, admit to using unauthorised gas lines in the past.
