At least 17 people have died and more than 100 have been injured in an explosion that hit a building in the commercial district of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
The police and doctors made it known.
The causes are yet to be ascertained.
The explosion rocked the lower floors of a seven-story building in Gulistan, a major hub for wholesale goods in Dhaka shortly before 5pm local time.
Rescuers arrived at the scene seven minutes after the blast, but the extent of the damage hampered their efforts to reach people still trapped inside the building, according to fire chief General Main Uddin.
"It's risky to enter the building now," he said.
Relatives and friends of people who were in the building or surrounding area flocked to the place looking for their missing loved ones.
A driver of a bus involved in the explosion said that around 30 people were injured when his vehicle drove past the building at the time of the explosion.
"I heard a huge explosion and then I was hit on the head by an object," he told reporters.
The building housed dozens of warehouses, bathroom accessories stores, and other commercial spaces.
"Our officers are investigating whether it was an act of sabotage or an accident," Dhaka Khandaker Police Commissioner Golam Faruq told reporters.
The military also sent in their own bomb squad.
Explosions and fires due to gas cylinders, air conditioners and faulty electrical cables are frequent in Bangladesh especially in crowded buildings and factories.