Covered van blast kills driver in Dhaka

A covered van, carrying vacuum plastic drums supposed to be used in transporting flammable chemicals, exploded near Matuail of Dhaka today, leaving one dead and another injured.

The explosion happened around 1:00pm on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway, caused serious damage to the vehicle and some nearby shops, Abdus Salam, officer-in-charge (OC) of Kadamtali Police Station, told The Daily Star.

The deceased was identified as the covered van driver, Swapan, 26. Swapan’s brother Rony, 23, was injured in the incident.

Mostofa Mohsin, senior station officer of Postogola Fire Station, said they found “ethyl acrylate and flammable elements” inside the drums and suspected the explosion might have taken place due to extreme heat.