Six lives lost to Sitakunda oxygen plant explosion
Yet another fire yesterday killed at least six people and injured 30 more at Sitakunda in Chattogram. This time the incident took place at an oxygen plant of Seema Re-Rolling Mill, with memories of the devastating BM Container Depot fire killing 50 people nine months ago still fresh.
The fire cost the lives of 50 people including 15 firefighters. Firefighters were able to bring the blaze at the container depot under control after three days of intense effort.
In July 2021, a deadly fire broke out at Hashem Foods Factory located in Rupganj near Dhaka, killing at least 52 people.
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These incidents are clear indications that catastrophic fire accidents are on the rise in non-RMG factories, giving rise to questions regarding the complacency of both factory owners and the relevant government authorities.
According to a study conducted by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) in January last year, safety standards in non-RMG industries have been declining due to weak factory structures and inadequate monitoring by government agencies.
The fire that broke out at the oxygen plant on Saturday has once again exposed these weaknesses and highlights the need for urgent action to be taken to prevent such tragedies from occurring in the future.
Brig Gen (Retd) Ali Ahmed Khan, former director general of Fire Service and Civil Defense, told TBS, "Like in the previous such incidents, it has been seen that there was a lack of safety measures in that factory. The authorities and the regulatory body who were supposed to make sure the factory complies with regulations apparently showed negligence in this regard as well."
"We see the authorities become proactive only after such an incident takes place and they launch several probes but the recommendations of the probe bodies always remain unfulfilled," he observed, adding, "In Bangladesh, we discuss and rise to the occasion only when a few lives are lost in accidents. We learn and we forget. But that should not happen."
Whenever the government allows or authorises an oxygen cylinder plant it should make sure that the factory complies with all regulations and safety measures so that it does not bring about any disaster afterward, he said.
One, hit by iron piece 1km away, dies
According to eyewitnesses, the blast at the oxygen plant of Seema Re-Rolling Mills in Sonaichhari near the Dhaka-Chattogam Highway occurred around 4:30 pm on Saturday.
Residents within a radius of up to two kilometers from the plant felt the tremors of the explosion.
The Fire Service and Civil Defence, the police, and Upazila administration officials rushed to the site after the incident.
The fire service said nine units of the firefighters brought the flames caused by the blast under control in less than an hour.
Photos from the site showed the blast ripped through metal structures of the factory in the Kadam Rasul area.
Chattogram Superintendent of Police SM Shafiullah said, "Five bodies were recovered from the scene till 6.36pm and the 30 injured were sent to Chattogram Medical College and Hospital."
Shamsul Alam (65), a shopkeeper, was among the dead.
His son Raihan Uddin said, "My father was working at his shop around one and a half kilometers away from the plant. A piece of iron from the plant fell on my father's shoulder and he died on the spot."
Workers of the mill said the explosion occurred while they were refilling oxygen cylinders.
One of the workers, Moslem Uddin told TBS, "There was a loud explosion at 4:15 while the oxygen cylinder was being refilled in the factory. It seemed an earthquake of 6-7 magnitude shook the entire area including the surrounding houses."
However, the fire service could not confirm the cause of the explosion till the time of writing this report at 8:30pm yesterday.
Chittagong Deputy Commissioner Abul Basar Mohammad Fakhruzzaman told reporters that the Chattogram district administration formed a probe committee comprising the additional district commissioner, the superintendent of police, and others concerned in this connection.
Besides, the fire service will also launch an investigation, he added.
Shipbreaking industry and oxygen plants in Sitakunda
The shipbreaking sector, which developed in the 1980s, was declared an industry in 2011. At that time, lands in seven mouzas of Sitakunda were designated as an industrial zone. There were about 160 shipyards there back then.
Because cutting scrap ships requires a lot of oxygen, entrepreneurs started building industrial oxygen plants in the industrial zone in 2000. As of 2015, there were 15 oxygen plants there.
In the last few years, due to various crises including instability in the international market, and an increase in the dollar exchange rate, the shipbreaking industry has come to a standstill. At present, only 20-22 industries are in operation. Currently, eight oxygen plants are supplying the oxygen required for ship-cutting operations. Seema Oxygen Plant is one of them.
After the death of local entrepreneur Mohammad Shafi Uddin, the owner of Seema Oxygen Plant, his three sons – Mohammad Mamun Uddin, Mohammad Parvez Uddin, and Mohammad Ashraf Uddin – are taking care of the business. The factory produces 2,500 cylinders of oxygen per day. And 250-300 workers are engaged in production.
