Bangladesh explosion leaves 34 dead and at least 300 injured
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As the efforts continue to find survivors and account for everyone at the port, Bangladesh authorities state that many remain missing due to the ongoing blaze that resulted from the hydrogen peroxide ignited inside the exploded containers.
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Bangladesh shipping container port explosion (AP)
At least 34 people have died after a fire that sparked a huge chemical explosion and was still blazing on Sunday at a shipping container depot in Bangladesh, officials said.
A huge chemical explosion continues to blaze throughout Sunday at a shipping containers depot in Bangladesh. The explosion was ignited by a fire that ended up killing 34 people and injuring over 300 people so far.
The toll is expected to rise well above 300 injured people, with injuries considered to be severe and critical. Witnesses have said that they had seen unrecovered bodies in the facility near the major southern port of Chittagong according to AFP.
The fire brigade told reporters that hundreds of rescuers have been involved in containing the blaze that broke out late Saturday in Sitakunda, approximately 40km away from Chittagong, when a number of containers comprising chemicals, including hydrogen peroxide, exploded. The fire service chief Brigadier General Main Uddin told reporters. "We still could not control the fire because of the existence of this chemical."
Elias Chowdhury, the chief doctor of the region, told AFP, as firefighters continued to battle the blaze, that there are several "journalists who were doing Facebook lives -- are still not accounted for." Moreover, Chittagong regional police chief Anwar Hossain declared that about 40 firefighters and 10 police officers were included among the injured and 5 firefighters have lost their lives in the process.
Update:
The death toll has risen to 49, with tens still reported missing.
