Three cars damaged in fire, explosion

Gas cylinder explosion leaves three private cars hardly recognisable at a parking at Mohakhali in the capital yesterday. No casualty was reported but the blast damaged windowpanes of some adjacent buildings. Photo: Anisur Rahman

The gas cylinder of a car kept in an open car park of EPI Bhaban in the capital's Mohakhali exploded after the car and an adjoining one caught fire yesterday.
The explosion could be heard in a half a kilometre radius, shattering glass windows and ripping off chunks of plaster from an adjacent building and damaging a third car in the car park, said witnesses.
However, no injury was reported.
Quoting locals, Fire Service and Civil Defence Director (operations) Maj Muhammad Mahboob suspected that a saloon car caught fire in the parking lot around 6:00pm and the fire spread to an adjoining four-wheel drive.
The flames went up at least 40 feet into the air and, at one stage, one of the saloon car's two gas cylinders exploded. None was injured as the EPI Building was closed due to the day being a weekly holiday, he said.
Ten fire fighting units doused the fire around 6:30pm, he added.
Officer-in-Charge Bhuiyan Mahbub Hasan of Banani Police Station said they were investigating to confirm whether the fire on the government cars was an accident or intentionally lit.