22 killed, 170 injured in fire at Bangladesh container depot

Doctors say the death toll could rise as some of the injured are in critical condition.

A massive fire has swept through a container depot in southeastern Bangladesh, killing at least 22 people and injuring more than 170, according to officials.

The fire broke out at a container facility on Saturday night at Sitakunda, 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the port city of Chittagong, triggering multiple explosions, officials said.

Doctors at the Chattogram Medical College hospital also said they believed the number of dead could still rise further.

“The number of fatalities is expected to rise as some of the injured are in critical condition,” Chittagong’s chief doctor, Elias Chowdhury, said.

Multiple firefighting units were at the scene attempting to douse the blaze when a massive explosion rocked the site, injuring scores of people, including firefighters, Abul Kalam Azad, the local police chief, said.

“Some 170 people were injured including at least 40 firefighters and 10 police officers,” he said.

The explosions shook the neighborhood and shattered glasses of windows of nearby houses, local residents said.

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