Deadly Garment Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Takes at Least 16 Victims
No fewer than 16 people have perished after a massive fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services warning that the number of victims could rise.
A total of sixteen bodies have been recovered but were burned impossible to identify, the fire service said.
Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the multi-story factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their loved ones still not found.
The blaze, which erupted at the factory around lunchtime, was brought under control after several hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse remained ablaze, emergency services said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports said.
Fire department authorities have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per witnesses, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also releases hazardous smoke when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the department director informed the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he noted.
Weeping family members stood outside the burned buildings, many of them holding photographs of their missing relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man searching desperately for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I heard about the fire, I came running. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my daughter back," he told journalists.
The devastating event has once again emphasized the hazardous conditions plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which provides jobs for countless of workers and is a major contributor to export earnings for the country.
