Three people were killed in an explosion on a fuel-laden lighterage vessel at the Chattogram port yesterday morning.

The victims were identified as deck cadet Shourabh Kumar Saha, foreman Nurul Islam, and casual staff Md Harun.

The "Banglar Jyoti", owned by the national flag carrier Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC), was unloading crude oil when the explosion took place at the forecastle, the forward part, of the ship at around 11:00am.

The explosion, which later resulted in a fire, severely damaged the ship's forecastle.

The vessel berthed at Dolphin Jetty No. 7 at 10:00am after bringing 11,700 tonnes of crude oil from a larger oil tanker, MT Omera Legacy, anchored at the outer anchorage.

Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) Secretary Md Omar Faruk said the crude oil was imported for Eastern Refinery Limited.

"Following the explosion, fireboats from the Bangladesh Navy, Chittagong Port Authority, and Coast Guard and several units from Fire Service and Civil Defence rushed to the spot and managed to bring the fire under control by 12:30pm."

"As a precautionary measure, all nearby ships were relocated to safe zones, and oil installations were instructed to remain on high alert."

BSC Managing Director Commodore Mahmudul Malek, at a press conference in the afternoon, said the deck cadet and the two staffers were carrying out routine maintenance at the ship's forecastle when crude oil was being unloaded.

"The maintenance did not include any fire-related work, which could have triggered the explosion."

Malek said an investigation into the incident would reveal the cause of the explosion and the extent of damage.

The ship was bought by the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation in 1987, when it had a lifespan of 25 years.

As such, the ship's lifecycle had ended in 2012.

Regarding this, Malek said the ship had been operated through intensive regular maintenance since it was contributing economically.

He went on to say that the explosion was not the result of a mechanical failure because it did not come from the engine or generator.

Meanwhile, the BSC formed two probe bodies, one for investigating the incident and the other to properly compensate the victims' families.

The Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) also formed a seven-member probe committee led by Managing Director Sharif Hasnat of the Eastern Refinery Limited to investigate the explosion.

BPC Director Anupam Barua said the committee was directed to submit a report within a day.