Dhaka: As many as 17 people were killed in a stampede in the northern Bangladesh city of Mymensingh on Friday. According to police, the stampede occurred during a handout of free clothes at a factory.
The incident took place when hundred of people tried to enter the factory through a small gate, according to police. It is heard that relatives of the dead had taken the bodies before the police arrived at the spot.
The police said that so far 17 bodies were recovered. It is learnt that emaciated women and poor are in majority among the dead. The death toll is expected to climb high.
According to reports, at around 4.45 am on Friday, nearly 1,500 people had massed outside the chewing tobacco factory after the owners announced that they would distribute free clothes to poor people in accordance with Islamic ritual.
