Jhalakathi oil tanker blast: 5 burn victims succumb to injuries

Five victims of burn injuries in the recent oil tanker blast on Sugandha river in Jhalakathi died at a Dhaka hospital today.

They breathed their last at different times of the day while undergoing treatment at Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, said Aiyub Hossain, resident surgeon of the institute.

The deceased are: Mehedi Hasan (26), Mosharraf Hossain Roni (28), Ripon Sikder (40), Shaheen Talukder (35), and Ashique Islam (40).

They were burnt from 54-70 percent on their bodies, according to their medical document.

With them, the death toll rose to six as one crew member died on the spot when the tanker, Sagar Nandini-3, which was carrying oil for Padma Oil Company, caught fire after the blast.

Currently, two more injured are undergoing treatment at the burn institute.

On November 12, a blast took place on the Sagar Nandini-3 on Sugandha river in Jhalakathi killing one person immediately and injuring seven others.

Diesel was supposed to be unloaded from the oil tanker that day when a problem developed in the pipe. While the pipe was being fixed, there was an explosion.

The bottom of the vessel was damaged allowing water to pour in.

Fire Service and Civil Defence officials later doused the fire and pumped out the water and prevented the ship from sinking.