Three members of a family suffered burn injures in a fire allegedly caused by a gas cylinder blast in Ashulia of Savar, on the outskirts of Dhaka, early today.

The injured people: Akram Hossein, 32, his wife Lovely Akter, 27, and their son Md Ashik, 10, were taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) in critical condition, our Savar correspondent reports quoting a fire service official.

The explosion occurred on the ground floor flat of a single storey building owned by one Mostofa Jamal in Baipail area around 5:00pm when Akram’s wife tried to lit gas stove with matchsticks, said Humayun Kabir, station officer of DEPZ fire service in Savar.

All the residents of the house use gas cylinders for cooking. The explosion might have taken place due to a gas leak, he added.

Doors, windows and some belongings of the family were damaged in the fire, Kabir said.

A portion of the brick wall of the building was found cracked due to the explosion, he said, adding that a furniture shop adjacent to the building was also gutted in the fire.   

Shohag Hossen, a neighbour of the victims, was also injured  as he tried to save the victims from the fire.

After hearing a big sound of explosion he rushed to Akram’s flat and tried to save three, he told the correspondent.