Bangladesh shipbreaking gas leak kills at least eight

A toxic gas leak from a vessel at a shipbreaking yard in Chittagong, Bangladesh, killed at least eight workers on Friday, police said. Five others were missing.

Senior police official Abdul Kuddus Chowdhury said authorities were searching for the missing workers. He said a committee had been formed to investigate the incident and an audit of the shipbreaking yard had been ordered.

Chowdhury said the Ferdous Steel Shipbreaking Yard and Recycling Factory, which had acquired the vessel previously used to transport liquefied natural gas, was listed as a “green” and compliant facility.

Fire service official Towfiqul Islam Bhuiyan said safety procedures appeared to have been breached because the vessel should have been free of gas before cutting began. Ferdous has not made any public comment about the incident.

Bhuiyan said firefighters recovered three bodies from the site and found several other workers unconscious before they were taken to hospital.

Bangladesh's shipbreaking industry is spread along a 25-kilometre stretch of the Chittagong coast on the Bay of Bengal. It is one of the world's largest shipbreaking hubs and employs tens of thousands of people. Labour and environmental groups have long scrutinised the sector over safety standards and working conditions.