10 hurt in gas cylinder explosion

At least ten workers sustained severe burn injuries when a gas cylinder exploded in a warehouse at Sadar upazila in Narayanganj yesterday.
The injured workers have been admitted to the burn unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
Police and local witnesses said, around 6:00am, a gas cylinder of MS Ruhin Enterprise, a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distributor, exploded blowing-off the tin-shed roof and two walls of the warehouse.
Hearing the loud thud of the explosion, locals rushed to the warehouse located at Fatullah in Sadar upazila and rescued the workers inside, they added.
Local witnesses alleged that the explosion must have occurred when transferring LPG from one cylinder to another.
They said the enterprise illicitly distributes LPG from two cylinders into 3 and earns additional profit through selling the extra cylinder.
The storehouse remains closed most of the day and operates whole night long with some 20-25 workers, locals said.
Abdul Motin, officer-in-charge of Fatullah Model Police Station, confirmed the incident.
The enterprise owner, Faisal Rana, went into hiding following the incident, he said.
Police seized a pickup van of the enterprise from the warehouse, but its driver managed to flee, he added.