In Pictures
Photos: The deadly fire at Bangladesh container depot
The cause of Saturday night’s fire, which triggered a series of explosions, is yet to be determined.
It took about four days to finally douse the deadly fire that burned down a part of an inland container depot in southwestern Bangladesh, killing at least 44 people, including 10 firefighters, and wounding 200 others.
The cause of Saturday night’s fire, which triggered a series of explosions, at BM Container Depot in Sitakunda, 40km (25 miles) from the southeastern port city of Chittagong, is yet to be determined.
Police on Thursday launched an investigation into eight officials from the depot on suspicion of negligence and mismanagement.
Explosive experts and police say the blaze could have been caused by a container of hydrogen peroxide stored at the depot. Fire service officials said they had not been informed that chemicals had been stored at the depot.
Of the 200 or so injured, 50 were rescue officials, police said. No one has yet been arrested for the deadly blaze, one of the worst in industrial fire-prone Bangladesh’s history.
In the last four days, family members of the victims were seen scurrying from place to place in search of traces of their loved ones among the piles of charred bodies. DNA tests were conducted to identify some dead bodies.
Mahmud Hossain Opu contributed to this report from Sitakunda, Bangladesh
