Hundreds of people received burns and high casualties are feared following an explosion at BM Container Depot, an inland container depot in Chattrogram's Sitakunda.
Stay with thereport.live to get the latest updates on the catastrophic incident.
Monday
8:00pm: The district administration revised the death toll from Sitakund container depot fire to 41 down from the earlier confirmed figure of 50. Deputy Commissioner of Chattogram Mominur Rahman said the actual death toll from the BM container depot fire was 41 after a recount of the bodies kept at Chattogram Medical College and Hospital.
4:00pm: The International Labour Organization (ILO) has said the fire and explosion at BM Container Depot illustrates the urgent need to ensure proper handling and storage of chemicals. The incident also illustrates the urgent need to ensure proper training for storage facility staff at awareness and operational levels, and effective crowd control during an emergency incident, it said in a statement on Monday.
3:00pm: The United Nations has said the tragic accident at the BM Container depot in Chattogram is reminder of the need to work together towards effective industrial and enterprise safety frameworks and their enforcement. The UN in Bangladesh on Monday called upon all parties involved to apply renewed vigor in addressing the safety deficits in workplaces across the country.
2:00pm: A special team of the Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence has reached Chattogram's BM Container Depot to remove the hazardous chemicals, mainly hydrogen peroxide, responsible for Saturday's massive fire, blast.
1:00pm: Body parts of some victims of the deadly Chattogram's BM Container Depot fire were seen lying on the depot ground as the rescuers moved closer to the explosion epicentre.
Fire service (Agrabad branch) Inspector Mahbub-e-Ilahi blamed the depot owners for hiding information that officially claimed 49 lives – including nine firefighters - and left more than 200 injured till Sunday evening.
Sunday
9:00pm: BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has blamed the failure of the government over the deadly fire at Sitakunda of Chattogram.
8:00pm: GOC of 24 infantry division, Major General Saiful Abedin, said the day-long devastating fire triggered by an explosion in Sitakundu depot will be brought under control by 10:00pm.
7:00pm: Officials of the BM Container Depot have announced to provide Tk10 lakh to the families of the workers who died in the deadly fire. They will also give Tk6 lakh to the critically injured victims who lost their body organs in the accident and Tk4 lakh to other injured workers.
6:00pm: Whether the Chattogram container depot fire was an accident or sabotage would be revealed in probe report, said Information Minister Hasan Mahmud on Sunday.
5:00pm: The army personnel have already made embankments beside the canals and drains near the depot in a bid to thwart the chemical-mixed water falling into the Bay of Bengal.
4:00pm: At least 49 people have been reported dead so far and more than 200, including cops and fire service officials, injured.
3:00pm: Till now, six members of the fire service have died and 21 members sustained injuries.
2:30pm: Alongside fire service men, army personnel have started working on rescue operation as well.
2:00pm: Fire service rescue teams are unable to find out what kind of chemicals are in the container depot, as none of the owner or officials of the depot are present.
1:30pm: A total of 47 burn patients are currently being treated in the two wards
1:00pm: CMCH gynae ward (number 31) has been converted into a burn unit as there is no space in the burn unit (ward number 36).
12:00 noon: So far seven deceased have been identified, Md Moniruzzaman (32), Mominul Haque (24), Mohiuddin (26), Habibur Rahman (26), Rabiul Alam (19), Shumon (28), and Noyon (20).
11:00am: Among the deceased, five are fire service personnel.
10:00am: The relatives of the deceased are being given Tk 50,000 by the DC office. Meanwhile Tk 20,000 is being given to the families of the injured.
8:30am: The death toll has gone up to 37 while hundreds of people, including police and fire service personnel sustained burn injuries in the incident.
7:30am: Nine more bodies were brought to CMCM from the spot, raising the death toll to 16.
6:30am: Civil Surgeon Mohammad Illius Chowdhury confirmed the death of seven people.
6:00am: Around 200 injured persons have so far been taken to Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH).
4:40am: President of the association of inland container depot owners Nurul Qayyum Khan said he suspects the explosion may have occurred due to a container with a shipment of hydrogen peroxide that was to be exported in the coming days.
4:25am: 1,000 containers belonging to RMG owners were burnt in the fire, says BGMEA vice president.
4:10am: One of the victims has been identified as Mominul Haque, 22, a computer operator at the privately run BM Container Depot.
4:00am: 25 firefighting units were trying to douse the blaze. The fire was still raging till the filing of this report and at times, small explosions were going off at the depot.
3:45am: BM container depot Director Mujibur Rahman said the company will bear the expenses of the treatment of the injured and will compensate the family members of the deceased.
3:15am: Bangladesh Red Crescent Society volunteers are working with the hospital authorities to collect blood from the donors.
3:00am: Doctors from nearby government and private hospitals have been requested to report to CMCH as the tide of injured persons arriving there has been unrelenting.
2:30am: The ICU bed at Chattogram Medical College Hospital is full. Therefore, in case of a crisis, the Divisional Director (Health) Dr Hasan Shahriar Kabir has given instructions to shift patients to the ICU of the Chittagong General Hospital in Anderkilla.
2:15am: The Faujdarhat-Bayezid Link Road was closed to traffic to facilitate the transportation of the injured. The other vehicles were being diverted to the Dhaka-Chattogram Highway.
2:00am: Chattogram civil surgeon has urged all government and private hospitals to send their ambulances to the sopt and the number of casualties is rising. Doctors said the injured are in immediate need of blood. People have been urged to donate blood for the injured.
1:45am: The fire was still raging till the filing of this report at 1:45 am and at times, small explosions were going off at the depot.
1:00am: Three more firefighting units joined hands with their colleagues.
12:30am: Over 50 people were taken to different units of the CMCH and more people were being brought to the hospital with severe burn injuries.
Saturday
11:30pm: 13 firefighting units rushed to the spot and were trying to douse the blaze.
11:00pm: At least four people have reportedly been died in the explosion. Unofficial sources said the deceased are all police personnel. However, details couldn't be known immediately.
9:30pm: Early accounts indicate a fire broke out at the container depot around 9:30pm. As Fire Service units worked to put it out, there was an explosion and then the fire spread.
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