Fire breaks out at container depot in Bangladesh kills at least 18 people

Dhaka: At least 18 people died after a fire broke out at a private Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Sitakunda, Chittagong, in Bangladesh, according to authorities on Sunday.

Among the deceased was a Fire Service personnel. The identities of other deceased remain unknown.

About 450 people, including police and Fire Service personnel, with multiple burn injuries have been admitted to different government and private hospitals.

A total of 25 fire service units are working to douse the blaze.

Meanwhile, Chattogram Civil Surgeon has sought help from doctors of private hospitals.

According to witnesses, there were 50,000 containers in the depot and the fire might have originated from combustible materials in there.

Md Shahjahan Shikder, Acting Officer (Media Cell) of Fire Service and Civil Defence Head Quarters, said the fire was reported at BM Container Depot in Chittagong’s Sitakunda at 11:25 pm on Saturday.

According to police and fire service, the fire spread from one container to another container at around 10:45 pm. Later, an explosion occurred due to the presence of chemicals in one of the containers. (UNI)