AC exploded in mosque: many burnt, 1 died in Narayanganj Bangladesh

Narayanganj AC Explosion

At least 50 people have been burnt and a child died in an explosion in a mosque in Narayanganj Bangladesh  

Half a dozen air-conditioners at a mosque in Narayanganj's Fatulla 'exploded together', injuring or burning more than 50 people, police said. A child died in Narayanganj Superintendent of Police Mohammad Zaidul Alam said the incident took place at Baitus Salat Jame Mosque in the West Talla area of Sadar Upazila after Esha prayers on Friday night.

He told that many people were offering sunnat prayers after the obligatory Esha prayers at night when the mosque exploded with a loud noise.

Thirty-seven of the burn victims have been sent to the Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in Dhaka. Imam of Baitus Salat Jame Mosque Abdul Malek (60) and Muazzin Delwar Hossain (50) are also among the 36 people.

Samanta Lal Sen, the coordinator of the institute, said the condition of almost everyone admitted was "alarming".

Citing locals, Fatullah police inspector Shafiqul Islam told that more than 50 people were praying inside the mosque at the time of the incident.

Kamrul Ahsan, an officer of the fire service control room, said that five of their units went to the spot and brought the fire under control after half an hour. Debashish Vardhan, deputy director of Fire Brigade, told: All exploded together. The existence of freon gas used in AC is found in the air inside the mosque. It is being investigated whether there is any other incident behind this. ”

He said a four-member inquiry committee headed by Fire Service Director (Operations) Lieutenant Colonel Zillur Rahman has been set up to look into the matter.

After extinguishing the fire, the fire service personnel went there and saw that the ACs on the ground floor of the mosque was burnt and melted. The glass of all the windows has been blown away, some of the window frames have been uprooted from the walls. Fans, electric wires and panel boards were also found burnt. Abu Hossain, a resident, said panic spread in the area after the blast. Many people crowd there to understand what has happened.