Gas cylinder explosion injures 12 in Manikganj

At least 12 people were injured, six of them seriously, in a gas cylinder blast at a fair at Bangla village in Singair upazila of the district yesterday.

The seriously injured are Balloon seller Kubbat Sheikh, 24, Rozina Begum, 25, her daughter Jonaki, 7, Bilkis Begum, her son Bijoy, 6 and Arfin, 6.

They were admitted to Manikganj Sadar Hospital and Singair Upazila Health Complex while the rest given first aid at the hospital and local clinics.

Hospital sources said Kubbat Sheikh was later shifted to Dhaka Pongu Hospital as his condition deteriorated.

Witnesses said the incident took place at noon when a gas cylinder of balloon seller Kubbat went off with a big bang at the fair, organised by locals, marking a religious function at the house of Jaher Boyati.