At least 25 people have died in a stampede at a charity clothing handout in Mymensingh, central Bangladesh, early Friday morning, police said.
The death toll is likely to rise, Abdur Rashid, senior assistant police superintendent of local Kotwali police, told a correspondent for Bangladesh's Daily Star newspaper.
Those killed include 22 women and 3 children. Most of the bodies have been taken to the hospital at Mymensingh Medical College Hospital, senior Kotwali police officer Kamrul Islam said.
Another 30 people were injured and taken to hospital, Islam told the Associated Press.
The stampede took place at around 4:00 a.m. Friday local time (6:00 p.m. Thursday ET) at a factory owned by a local businessman during Zakat — when wealthier people provide charitable donations to the poor ahead of Eid celebrations.
Footage on Bangladeshi TV reportedly showed scenes of devastation outside the factory, with hundreds of pairs of discarded, blood-splattered sandals strewn across the floor by the gates to the compound, according to AFP.
Police said around 1,500 people had amassed outside the factory ahead of the giveaway. The factory's owner and six other people have been arrested.