Gas pipe abandoned for 22 years causes N’ganj mosque blast
News Desk :
On September 4, scores of Muslim worshippers congregated at the Baitus Salat mosque in Narayanganj’s Fatullah to perform their night prayers. But in a devastating turn of events, multiple near-simultaneous blasts ripped through the two-storey structure, leaving 31 people dead, reports, bdnews24.com
The inquiries into the incident started in earnest with the authorities suspecting that gas accumulation inside the mosque triggered the explosions. State utility Titas subsequently dug the surrounding areas to check the lines.
They subsequently discovered six leaks in a pipeline that passed below the mosque. But while the line had purportedly been abandoned for nearly 22 years, gas was still blowing through it as the transmission had not been turned off.
Fire Service officials believe the blasts were sparked by a gas leak from that pipeline.
In 1988, another gas pipe was installed to provide gas to the nearby houses, but the older line still had gas running through it.
However, local officials of Titas could not explain why that was the case. They believe customers whose gas supply was connected to the old pipe ‘should have informed’ Titas after the new pipeline was installed. That is the reason why the supply through the old pipeline was not disconnected, according to them.
But the Managing Director of Titas, Ali Mohd Al-Mamun, disagreed with the explanation of the local official. It was the local office of Titas which should have taken measures to disconnect the abandoned gas line, he said.
Mosque committee leaders said they “smelled” gas in the mosque about 10-12 days before the incident. But they could not provide a satisfactory explanation as to why the windows were not kept open after that. Worshippers wanted the airconditioners at the mosque to switch on because of the heat outside at the time, according to a shopkeeper who had left the mosque just before the explosions. Therefore the windows had to be closed when the air-conditioners were turned on, he said.
More than 50 Muslim worshippers sustained burn injuries in the blasts.
Initially, it was assumed that the blasts were caused by the six air-conditioners installed in the mosque. But later it was learned that gas from leaked underground pipelines had accumulated inside the building, with an electrical short-circuit causing a fire which sparked the fatal blasts, according to the Fire Service.
Beside the Fire Service, Titas, the district administration and the Narayanganj City Corporation have each opened separate probes into the incident.
Two concrete roads run on different sides of the mosque — one on the east stretching to Khanpur and the other to Sabujbagh from the north, the bdnews24.com reporter found during a visit to the area on Sept 11.
A supply line of Titas runs down the middle of the road towards Khanpur. Another pipeline with a 3-inch radius runs along the northern road towards Sabujbag. This pipeline was installed in 1998.
In the 1980s, before the 3-inch pipeline was installed, three houseowners in Sabujbag had their gas connections linked to a auxiliary pipeline. But while that old line in front of the houses was discarded, the main gas line on the road was not disconnected, according to some locals.
The authorities did not find any leak in the 3-inch pipe after the incident but the other pipeline had six perforations, they said. This pipeline is located near pillar No. 4 of the mosque.
When a new gas connection was installed at Sabujbagh, the ‘risers’ of the old gas connections in front of those three houses were cut off and replaced with new connections. But the old gas line was not severed from the base, Abdul Gafur, president of Baitus Salat Mosque Committee, told bdnews24.com.
“That pipe remained there with gas passing through it and settling inside the mosque. This incident would never have happened if the authorities had removed the pipe. Also, they could have disconnected the supply from the mainline, which they didn’t,” he said.
The road in front of the mosque is invariably dotted with water puddles. But in the last two months, commuters saw bubbles form on the surface of those puddles, he said.
“The mosque committee’s general secretary went to Titas Gas office and informed them about the issue. Titas asked for Tk 50,000 to repair the line.”
The gas pipe with the leakages was situated near the mosque but not directly underneath it. bdnews24.com asked the Fire Service how gas accumulated inside the mosque.
Officials saw gas seeping out of six or seven spots inside the mosque, having made its way into the mosque from underground, according to Lt Col Zillur Rahman, director of Fire Service and Civil Defence.
“Sometimes there is a gap or crack in the soil. It is natural for gas to move upward and if it faces an obstacle there, it will move right or left. What we see from the signs in the scene is that the gas pipe runs exactly beside the mosque. The flow was somehow blocked, forcing the gas to enter the mosque. We can find an answer once the investigation is complete.”
“All gas lines on the east and north side of the mosque were dug out. No rupture was found on the line at the east but six were found in the pipeline at the north. Gas supply had resumed after the leaks were repaired,” Abdul Wahab Talukdar, chief of Titas committee, told reporters on Sept 9.
The foundation of pillar No. 4 on the northern side of the mosque cuts across the Titas gas pipeline and goes six inches towards the street, he said. The wrapping of that pipe was ruined when the foundation of the pillar was constructed, which caused the rupture in the pipe, leading to the gas leak.
“The ruptured gas line was brought by three customers in the 1980s. They switched their connection to the new 3-inch wide pipeline in 1998. The new pipeline had no ruptures in it,” Md Mofizul Islam, deputy general manager of Titas in Narayanganj, said.
“That line drawn by the customers has been abandoned since then but they never informed Titas about it. It was their responsibility to inform the authorities.”
“Local office of Titas Gas should be aware of the abandoned pipeline. The regional office should have disconnected the supply. We can draw a conclusion on how the abandoned pipe remained there only after the investigation,” Ali Mohd Al-Mamun, managing director of Titas Gas, told bdnews24.com.
He dismissed the claim of the mosque committee of lodging a complaint on the issue. “No one informed Titas Gas or even the local police station.”
On September 4, scores of Muslim worshippers congregated at the Baitus Salat mosque in Narayanganj’s Fatullah to perform their night prayers. But in a devastating turn of events, multiple near-simultaneous blasts ripped through the two-storey structure, leaving 31 people dead, reports, bdnews24.com
The inquiries into the incident started in earnest with the authorities suspecting that gas accumulation inside the mosque triggered the explosions. State utility Titas subsequently dug the surrounding areas to check the lines.
They subsequently discovered six leaks in a pipeline that passed below the mosque. But while the line had purportedly been abandoned for nearly 22 years, gas was still blowing through it as the transmission had not been turned off.
Fire Service officials believe the blasts were sparked by a gas leak from that pipeline.
In 1988, another gas pipe was installed to provide gas to the nearby houses, but the older line still had gas running through it.
However, local officials of Titas could not explain why that was the case. They believe customers whose gas supply was connected to the old pipe ‘should have informed’ Titas after the new pipeline was installed. That is the reason why the supply through the old pipeline was not disconnected, according to them.
But the Managing Director of Titas, Ali Mohd Al-Mamun, disagreed with the explanation of the local official. It was the local office of Titas which should have taken measures to disconnect the abandoned gas line, he said.
Mosque committee leaders said they “smelled” gas in the mosque about 10-12 days before the incident. But they could not provide a satisfactory explanation as to why the windows were not kept open after that. Worshippers wanted the airconditioners at the mosque to switch on because of the heat outside at the time, according to a shopkeeper who had left the mosque just before the explosions. Therefore the windows had to be closed when the air-conditioners were turned on, he said.
More than 50 Muslim worshippers sustained burn injuries in the blasts.
Initially, it was assumed that the blasts were caused by the six air-conditioners installed in the mosque. But later it was learned that gas from leaked underground pipelines had accumulated inside the building, with an electrical short-circuit causing a fire which sparked the fatal blasts, according to the Fire Service.
Beside the Fire Service, Titas, the district administration and the Narayanganj City Corporation have each opened separate probes into the incident.
Two concrete roads run on different sides of the mosque — one on the east stretching to Khanpur and the other to Sabujbagh from the north, the bdnews24.com reporter found during a visit to the area on Sept 11.
A supply line of Titas runs down the middle of the road towards Khanpur. Another pipeline with a 3-inch radius runs along the northern road towards Sabujbag. This pipeline was installed in 1998.
In the 1980s, before the 3-inch pipeline was installed, three houseowners in Sabujbag had their gas connections linked to a auxiliary pipeline. But while that old line in front of the houses was discarded, the main gas line on the road was not disconnected, according to some locals.
The authorities did not find any leak in the 3-inch pipe after the incident but the other pipeline had six perforations, they said. This pipeline is located near pillar No. 4 of the mosque.
When a new gas connection was installed at Sabujbagh, the ‘risers’ of the old gas connections in front of those three houses were cut off and replaced with new connections. But the old gas line was not severed from the base, Abdul Gafur, president of Baitus Salat Mosque Committee, told bdnews24.com.
“That pipe remained there with gas passing through it and settling inside the mosque. This incident would never have happened if the authorities had removed the pipe. Also, they could have disconnected the supply from the mainline, which they didn’t,” he said.
The road in front of the mosque is invariably dotted with water puddles. But in the last two months, commuters saw bubbles form on the surface of those puddles, he said.
“The mosque committee’s general secretary went to Titas Gas office and informed them about the issue. Titas asked for Tk 50,000 to repair the line.”
The gas pipe with the leakages was situated near the mosque but not directly underneath it. bdnews24.com asked the Fire Service how gas accumulated inside the mosque.
Officials saw gas seeping out of six or seven spots inside the mosque, having made its way into the mosque from underground, according to Lt Col Zillur Rahman, director of Fire Service and Civil Defence.
“Sometimes there is a gap or crack in the soil. It is natural for gas to move upward and if it faces an obstacle there, it will move right or left. What we see from the signs in the scene is that the gas pipe runs exactly beside the mosque. The flow was somehow blocked, forcing the gas to enter the mosque. We can find an answer once the investigation is complete.”
“All gas lines on the east and north side of the mosque were dug out. No rupture was found on the line at the east but six were found in the pipeline at the north. Gas supply had resumed after the leaks were repaired,” Abdul Wahab Talukdar, chief of Titas committee, told reporters on Sept 9.
The foundation of pillar No. 4 on the northern side of the mosque cuts across the Titas gas pipeline and goes six inches towards the street, he said. The wrapping of that pipe was ruined when the foundation of the pillar was constructed, which caused the rupture in the pipe, leading to the gas leak.
“The ruptured gas line was brought by three customers in the 1980s. They switched their connection to the new 3-inch wide pipeline in 1998. The new pipeline had no ruptures in it,” Md Mofizul Islam, deputy general manager of Titas in Narayanganj, said.
“That line drawn by the customers has been abandoned since then but they never informed Titas about it. It was their responsibility to inform the authorities.”
“Local office of Titas Gas should be aware of the abandoned pipeline. The regional office should have disconnected the supply. We can draw a conclusion on how the abandoned pipe remained there only after the investigation,” Ali Mohd Al-Mamun, managing director of Titas Gas, told bdnews24.com.
He dismissed the claim of the mosque committee of lodging a complaint on the issue. “No one informed Titas Gas or even the local police station.”
