A fire believed to have been triggered by underground gas escaping during deep tube-well drilling in Inani, Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, continued to burn on Wednesday, more than 24 hours after it broke out.
Authorities have suspended electricity supply along a 15km stretch from Monkhali to Patuartek over fears that the flames could spread to power lines. The administration has also restricted public movement within a 200-metre radius of the site.
A team of experts from the Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company (Bapex) is scheduled to investigate the source and composition of the gas and determine the cause of the fire on Wednesday morning. The team visited the site on Tuesday night.
The experts arrived in Cox’s Bazar on Tuesday evening and reached the site around 10pm. Meanwhile, four fire service units have been working to control the blaze, but the continuous flow of gas from underground has prevented them from extinguishing it.
SM Nafifun Arham, a Bapex manager (geology) and head of the geological survey team, inspected the site and offered a preliminary assessment that drilling may have reached a gas-bearing layer about 1,000 feet below the surface.
He said gas might have travelled upwards through underground fissures or geological faults before escaping through the borehole.
According to Nafifun, once a gas-bearing layer is breached, high-pressure gas can escape through cracks in the surrounding rock and continue reaching the surface for several days. He said the gas may have caught fire after coming into contact with an external ignition source, such as a spark caused by human activity or an electrical discharge.
Based on the flame’s colour and the smoke, he suspected the gas might contain relatively heavy hydrocarbons. However, its composition cannot be confirmed until samples are collected and analysed in a laboratory. The volume of any underground gas reserves also remains unknown.
Nafifun cautioned that attempts to stop the leak or contain the pressure could force the gas through other weak points underground, potentially increasing the risk. He said the immediate priority was to ensure public safety and keep people away from the site.
The gas leak began around 7:30am on Tuesday while workers were excavating the ground to install a deep tube well at the homestead of Mohammad Abdullah, near the Inani Chhoto Khal bridge in Jaliapalong union, Ukhiya. The foul-smelling gas caught fire shortly after emerging from the ground.
Saidul Islam, an official at Ukhiya Fire Service and Civil Defence station, said four units responded to the incident but could not extinguish the flames because gas continued to escape from underground.
He said limited manpower and technical equipment had made the situation difficult to manage, prompting the team to notify higher authorities. Relevant agencies, including Bapex and Petrobangla, were subsequently informed.
The blaze has caused alarm among local residents and employees of nearby hotels. Tourism entrepreneurs Jahangir Alam and Abu Syed said a fire at Tup Tup Resort in Inani’s Patuartek area about 10 days earlier had killed 11 tourists, adding to local anxiety over the latest incident. The flames can be seen from a considerable distance.
Mohammad Al-Amin, an employee at a five-star hotel adjacent to the site, said some hotel workers lived in a room next to the area where the fire broke out.
“We are living in great fear with the fire burning like this,” he said.
Ukhiya Palli Bidyut Samity has suspended electricity supply along the approximately 15km stretch from Monkhali to Patuartek because of concerns that the flames could reach power lines.
Ukhiya Upazila Nirbahi Officer Panna Akter said authorities were advising residents to maintain a safe distance from the site. Necessary measures were being taken based on the experts’ preliminary observations, and the administration had decided to cordon off the area within a 200-metre radius.
She added that local residents had told her gas exploration might have taken place in the area during the British colonial period. The administration would seek assistance from the army and other agencies if necessary.
Authorities have decided to keep the power supply suspended until the fire risk has been assessed and the area is considered safe.