Four young men died after entering a septic tank in Harinchhara Tea Estate under Sreemangal upazila in Moulvibazar early Thursday.
One more person was critically injured and has been transferred to Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital for advanced treatment. Doctors suspect the deaths were caused by inhalation of toxic gas inside the tank.
The deceased have been identified as Rana Nayek (17), Shrabon Nayek (19), Krishna Robidas (20), and Nipen Fulmali (27).
All of them were sons of tea workers from the Harinchhara Tea Estate. The incident occurred around 1:00 AM on Thursday.
Another individual, Rabi Bunarjee (20), was rescued alive but in critical condition. After receiving initial treatment, he was referred to Sylhet for further care.
According to family and hospital sources, all four individuals brought to Moulvibazar 250-bed hospital during the night were already dead. Rabi Bunarjee was brought in later and transferred after preliminary medical attention.
Relatives of the victims reported that the tragedy began when a mobile phone accidentally fell into the septic tank. One of the youths went down to retrieve it but quickly lost consciousness.
Three others followed one by one in an attempt to rescue him, but they too lost consciousness inside the tank. A fifth person, who went down afterward, was found alive but in critical condition.
Dr. Ahmed Faisal Zaman, the residential medical officer of Moulvibazar Sadar Hospital, stated that five individuals were brought in during the night. Four were declared dead on arrival, and one was sent to Sylhet for advanced care.
Confirming the incident, the officer-in-charge of Sreemangal Police Station, Aminul Islam, said they received information around 1:30 AM that four individuals had died after entering a septic tank in the Harinchhara Tea Estate.
