The explosion began with a shipment of gas.
Workers were unloading cylinders from a covered van at S Suhi Industrial Park in Jamgora, Ashulia, on Sunday evening when one exploded, according to the Fire Service and Civil Defence.
Further blasts followed, setting nearby vehicles alight and sending cylinders and debris beyond the factory compound.
About 200 yards away, Joynab Begum, 55, was visiting her daughter at a tailoring shop. A cylinder crashed through the tin roof and struck her in the head, killing her at the scene, her daughter Sanjida Akter said.
By Monday, eight people had died and at least 20 were injured. Five bodies recovered from a burned covered van were so badly charred that police said DNA tests would be needed to identify them.
The accident has put scrutiny on a workaround increasingly used by manufacturers facing Bangladesh’s chronic gas shortage: transporting compressed natural gas by road in cylinders to factories unable to obtain sufficient supplies from the national grid.
An Industrial Police assessment of 10,063 factories found more than 400, mostly garment units, were struggling with gas or electricity shortages by the end of August. Of those, 115 were affected by gas shortages and 195 by shortages of both gas and electricity.
More than 150 factories were operating at just 10% to 50% of normal capacity, while 202 faced possible closure within two months if the energy shortage persisted.
Industry estimates suggest a wider problem. Mahmud Hasan Khan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said last week that about 2,000 of its roughly 2,500 to 2,800 member factories were experiencing gas and electricity problems.
BGMEA estimated in April that energy shortages had cut production capacity by 25% to 30%. By August, it put the reduction at 30% to 40%.
Bangladesh faces a daily gas deficit of about 1.3bn cubic feet, according to Petrobangla officials. Industrial users in Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Manikganj and Narsingdi entitled to pipeline pressure of 10 to 15 pounds per square inch have in some cases been receiving two to three PSI or less.
The shortage worsened after a July fire forced one of the country’s two floating LNG terminals at Moheshkhali out of operation, temporarily removing about 450mn to 500mn cubic feet of daily supply.
Factories have increasingly sought gas elsewhere. Garment and knitwear industry leaders said last month that manufacturers were buying CNG from filling stations to compensate for inadequate pipeline supplies.
BGMEA and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association asked the government to allow uninterrupted CNG purchases as a temporary measure.
Regulators had already raised concerns about how some of that gas was being transported.
Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company on July 26 ordered 21 CNG filling stations in Gazipur and Tangail to stop filling unauthorised open or cascade cylinders carried on covered vans and trucks.
It said gas supplied to CNG stations was authorised for motor vehicles and that filling such cylinders breached gas regulations and posed safety risks.
Intraco Refueling Station had also largely suspended a system transporting CNG from Bhola to factories around Dhaka and Gazipur using 38 heavy-duty cascade-cylinder trailers after questions over safety certification.
By June, only three vehicles were operating, with most lacking licences from the Department of Explosives.
The department’s director-general had warned that carrying highly compressed gas on Bangladesh’s congested roads created collision and explosion risks.
In Ashulia, regulators are now examining a similar system.
A Department of Explosives official told Daily Waadaa that Pretty Composite Textile was receiving CNG in cylinders installed inside covered vans and transferring it to a chamber supplying factory boilers.
The official described the arrangement as illegal and unsafe, saying it was not permitted under existing rules. Fire Service officials also raised concerns about the system.
Guidance for factories using compressed or liquefied flammable gas requires cylinders to be stored in cool, dry and ventilated areas away from heat and ignition sources. Cylinders should have pressure-relief valves and undergo periodic inspection and hydrostatic testing.
Ashulia Police Station officer-in-charge Mohammad Tarikul Islam said the explosion was under investigation.
“Legal action will be taken against those responsible after the investigation,” he told Waadaa.
The explosion occurred at about 6:45pm at a Pretty Group garment factory inside the industrial park.
Hafizur Rahman, assistant director of the Fire Service and Civil Defence’s Dhaka Zone-4, said 12 units were dispatched from the Zirabo and DEPZ fire stations. Firefighters arrived at about 7:30pm and brought the blaze under control shortly after 8:30 pm.
The Fire Service’s preliminary assessment was that the first cylinder exploded while gas was being unloaded from a covered van. Flames then spread to several vehicles.
Nazma Akter, a witness, told Waadaa that several explosions followed. Factory windows shattered and metal, bricks and glass were thrown into surrounding areas, injuring pedestrians and roadside traders.
Parul Akter, who was inside a factory, said workers rushed downstairs when the fire alarm sounded.
“As soon as the alarm sounded, we started running downstairs,” she said. “We came down three floors and saw five vehicles burning at the gate.”
Rabiul Islam, a sewing helper on the sixth floor, said workers struggled to find a safe route.
“People from the ground floor were going upstairs and those upstairs were coming down,” he said. “When I reached the ground floor, I saw smoke. Later, I went up to the roof.”
The factories were closed at the time and authorities said no garment workers were known to have died. Most casualties were people working or travelling nearby.
Nazrul Islam, 30, who sold onions, garlic and other produce outside the industrial park, was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital after being seriously injured. He died at about 10:30pm, according to his son, Samiul Islam.
Three other victims were being treated there: raw-material trader Sujan Mia, 25; his father, Mukles Mia, 45; and Nur Islam, 30, a gas transport driver.
Sujan and Mukles were struck by debris. Nur Islam suffered severe burns and was admitted to the hospital’s burn unit in critical condition.
Police said the five charred bodies recovered from the vehicle would be identified by matching DNA samples with relatives at a Criminal Investigation Department laboratory.
The explosion also damaged surrounding buildings. Farzana Sultana, who owns a property beside the industrial park, said its windows were shattered.
Jamal Mostafa, another property owner, questioned why large quantities of gas were being brought into an area already connected to the national network. Several cylinder-carrying vehicles remained parked nearby after the accident, he said.
The problem is not the use of cylinders alone. Properly certified systems can transport and store pressurised gas. The risks depend on the cylinders and vehicles used, their certification and maintenance, how gas is transferred and stored, and whether fire and emergency safeguards are enforced.
Kalpona Akter, founder and executive director of the Bangladesh Center for Workers Solidarity, told Waadaa that the deaths also highlighted weaknesses in compensation for people killed or injured in workplace accidents. Labour leaders called for compensation standards consistent with ILO Conventions 102 and 121.
BGMEA expressed condolences to the victims’ families and wished the injured a speedy recovery.
Four factories inside the industrial park remained closed on Monday, with additional police deployed outside as residents gathered near the site. Factory officials said operations were expected to resume on Tuesday.
Investigators are now examining the cylinders and the vehicle carrying them, including the source of the gas, how it was transported, whether the equipment was licensed and compliant with safety requirements, and the procedures used to unload and transfer the gas.
--