A seven-year-old boy died and at least 39 others injured as all six air conditioners of a mosque exploded during Esha prayers in Fatullah of Narayanganj Friday night.
The deceased was identified as Jewel, said sources from Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).
The Imam of the mosque was also badly injured in the blast. Hospital authority said they need blood for the victims.
Locals said the explosion took place around 8:45 pm at Baitus Salat Mosque of Fatullah when the devotees had just finished their prayers.
One of the air conditioners of the mosque went off and sparked a fire inside the mosque. Later, all the six ACs exploded there, creating panic among the devotees.
Around 40 devotees received burn injuries in the incident.
Abdullah Al Arefin, deputy assistant director of Narayanganj Fire Service, said firefighters, on information, rushed to the spot, rescued the injured and sent them to hospital.
Dr Imtiaj, civil surgeon of Narayanganj, said the injured were first taken to Narayanganj General Hospital. Of them, 20 were later sent to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) in critical condition.
Meanwhile, inspector Bachchu Mia of DMCH police outpost said a total of 37 injured, including the Imam and Muajjin of the mosque, were taken to the hospital from Narayanganj.
They were receiving treatment at the burn unit of Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn & Plastic Surgery.
Nazmul Hossain, a doctor at the emergency unit of Narayanganj Hospital, said they referred the injured to the DMCH after providing first aid due to their critical condition.
“Some of them suffered 99 percent burn injuries,” the doctor added.
Locals accused Titas Gas Transmission & Distribution Company Limited (TGTDCL) of being inactive to solve a gas leakage issue in the mosque building which was going on for quite a long time. They claimed that they occasionally used to smell gas inside the mosque.
Upon initial investigation, fire service authorities believe the incident might have occurred due to a gas leakage.
Fire service officials and Titas workforce are currently working on the site to repair a faulty gas line, which has reportedly been in such state for a long time.
nh/
