At least 21 people were confirmed dead as a result of a gas explosion in the Baitus Salah Jame mosque, located in the Narayanganj city of Bangladesh. Dozens of injured worshipers are still receiving medical treatment, the Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported.
The explosion occurred on the evening of Friday as people gathered in the mosque for the evening prayer.
According to preliminary data from Narayanganj Fire Service’s deputy assistant director Abdullah Al Arefin, as quoted in the report, gas leaked out from underground pipes and accumulated inside the mosque and then detonated “due to sparks when someone tried to switch [one of the six] air conditioners or fans on or off.”
There was a 7-year-old child among the deceased, according to the report.
More than 15 people are reportedly still being treated from burns and other injuries at the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. All of them are in critical condition, Partha Shangkar Paul, a resident doctor at the institute, was cited in the report as saying.
The local fire department and police have launched an investigation into the incident.
