Toxic gas leaked from a vessel at a shipbreaking yard, killing at least eight workers, with five others missing, police said.
Witnesses said they heard screams from inside the yard in the southeastern port city of Chittagong before workers rushed some of the victims to hospital.
The Ferdous Steel Shipbreaking Yard and Recycling Factory, which acquired the vessel previously used to transport liquefied natural gas, was listed as a “green” and compliant facility, he said.
But fire service official Towfiqul Islam Bhuiyan said safety procedures appeared to have been flouted, as the vessel should have been free of any gas before cutting began.
“The yard authorities did not follow the instructions. Workers who were exposed to the gas died, while those who were farther away survived,” he said.
Bhuiyan said firefighters recovered three bodies from the site and found several other workers unconscious.
Among the workers killed on Friday was Palash Jaladas.
His wife, Bhoumika Jaladas, who was eight months pregnant, was inconsolable.
“What shall I do now?” she told reporters. — AFP
