At least seven people were injured when a truck’s gas cylinder exploded while it was being refuelled at a compressed natural gas (CNG) station in Savar, on the outskirts of Dhaka, on Tuesday evening.
The explosion occurred at around 6.30pm at Online Filling Station (CNG) Limited in the Salehpur area of Aminbazar, beside the Dhaka–Aricha Highway. The force of the blast severely damaged the truck, leaving its tyres burst and its underside badly wrecked.
The injured were rescued and taken to Enam Medical College Hospital in Savar for treatment. Three filling station employees — Billal, 26, Abdur Rahman, 30, and Munno, 50 — sustained serious injuries and were admitted to the hospital. Four other people who had come to the station to obtain CNG also suffered injuries and received initial treatment.
Kabir Ahmed, one of the injured people, said the explosion occurred suddenly while gas was being supplied to the truck. A loud bang was heard as the cylinder burst, sending the workers involved in refuelling flying several feet away. The three employees sustained serious injuries in the incident.
Filling station employees said nobody was inside the truck when the gas was being supplied. The extent of the damage to the vehicle highlighted the force of the explosion, although the precise circumstances that led to the cylinder bursting have yet to be established.
Rakib Al Mahmud Shuvo, the duty doctor at Enam Medical College Hospital, said three people with serious injuries had been admitted and were receiving emergency treatment. They were not considered to be in immediate danger at the time of his assessment.
Saiful Alam, officer-in-charge of Savar Model Police Station, confirmed the incident. He said a team from the Aminbazar police outpost reached the scene shortly after the explosion, brought the situation under control and arranged for the injured to be taken to hospital. Police have seized the damaged truck as part of the investigation.
An official at the filling station said investigators initially suspected that the truck might have been fitted with a substandard or expired gas cylinder. The cylinder and the circumstances surrounding the explosion were being examined, the official added. The suspected defect has not yet been confirmed as the cause.
CNG cylinders store gas under high pressure and must meet applicable safety standards. Their condition, service life and testing records are important factors in preventing accidents during refuelling. A damaged, defective or improperly maintained cylinder can pose a serious risk to workers, customers and anyone nearby.
However, it would be premature to attribute this explosion to a faulty or expired cylinder before the technical examination is complete. Investigators will need to establish the cylinder’s condition and determine whether any equipment failure or other factor contributed to the blast.
The incident also highlights the safety risks associated with high-pressure gas handling at filling stations. Proper inspection of cylinders, adherence to refuelling procedures and maintenance of safety equipment are essential to reducing the likelihood of similar accidents.
Police have confirmed that the truck has been seized and that the injured have been taken for medical treatment. The investigation is continuing, and the exact cause of the explosion remains undetermined.
