United News of Bangladesh

The last surviving victim of the devastating gas explosion in Narayanganj’s Fatullah has died at a hospital in Dhaka, completing a heartbreaking tragedy that claimed the lives of all five members of a family, including three children. Sayma Akter, 32, who had been battling severe burn injuries at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, died around 8:40am on Friday, hospital sources said. She was the last survivor among the family members injured in the blast. Earlier, Sayma’s husband Kalam, 45, son Munna, 12, and daughters Munni, 10, and Kotha, 7, had succumbed to their injuries while undergoing treatment at the institute. Of them, Munna and Munni died on Thursday, while Kotha on Wednesday and Kalam on Monday. The explosion occurred around 6:55am on May 10 at a ground-floor flat of an eight-storey building in the Uttar Bhuigar area of Fatullah in Narayanganj Sadar upazila, leaving all five family members critically injured. According to the Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence, gas had accumulated inside the closed room due to a leak in a gas line adjacent to the kitchen. The explosion is believed to have occurred when a lighter was ignited. Kalam had suffered burns on 95 percent of his body, Sayma on 60 percent, while their three children sustained burns ranging between 30 and 52 percent.