8 dead in blast in Bangladeshi capital Dhaka

By Md. Kamruzzaman

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) - The death toll from an explosion in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka rose to eight late on Sunday as a victim succumbed to injuries while under treatment, according to hospital sources.

"We found two people dead after they tried to reach us having been injured (in the blast) and another, approximately 35-year-old man named Swapon, died later during treatment," Dr. Partha Sankar Paul at the hospital told Anadolu Agency.

Dr. Md. Abul Kalam, head of Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery of the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, also spoke to Anadolu Agency, saying that the condition of four patients was still critical. "Two of them have been shifted to the intensive care unit."

He added that five patients with light injuries had been released after primary treatment.

A powerful explosion hit a three-story building in central Dhaka's Moghbajar wireless gate, resulting in seven instant deaths with nearly 50 injured.

Police, fire services and civil defense forces suggest that the blast may have been caused by gas.

Sazzad Hussain, Fire Service and Civil Defense chief, said a probe had been launched to investigate the cause of the explosion. He told Anadolu Agency that the committee would submit its findings within seven working days.

After visiting the site, Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Md. Shafiqul Islam told journalists that after consulting with Fire Service staff who took part in the rescue operation, it appeared that some gas was stored in the building.

He added that at least seven surrounding buildings and some public buses were damaged.

Eyewitnesses at the scene on Sunday night said the ground floor of the building collapsed and the windows of three nearby buses and adjacent buildings shattered.