Gas cylinder blast kills 5 children in Bangladesh

A screenshot of a crime scene area that happened in Dhaka, Bangladesh. (File/AFP)
  • The children who died were between ages 7 and 14, Police Chief Abul Kalam Azad said

DHAKA: Police say at least five children have died and 17 others were injured after a gas cylinder used to inflate balloons exploded in Bangladesh’s capital.
Police Chief Abul Kalam Azad said the explosion took place Wednesday when a vendor was selling balloons to children who live in a nearby slum in Dhaka’s Rupnagar area.
The children who died were between ages 7 and 14. Azad said the death toll could rise.
The cause of the explosion was not clear immediately, but the use of substandard gas cylinders is rampant in the South Asian nation where inspection and monitoring by the authorities are weak.