Devastating Clothing Factory Fire in Bangladesh Takes a Minimum of 16 Lives
A minimum of 16 persons have perished after a enormous fire erupted at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with authorities stating that the death toll could increase.
A total of sixteen bodies have been found but were charred impossible to identify, the firefighters stated.
Distraught relatives gathered outside the four-level factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on that day in search of their loved ones still missing.
The inferno, which erupted at the factory around midday, was brought under control after three hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse kept burning, emergency services said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, journalistic accounts reported.
Fire department authorities have not established which of the two buildings ignited initially.
According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic and chemical peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Synthetic materials also releases hazardous smoke when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director the fire service official told the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also ongoing, he noted.
Crying family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them holding photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I heard about the fire, I rushed here. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my child back," he told journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again highlighted the security issues affecting Bangladesh's garment industry, which provides jobs for numerous of workers and is a crucial contributor to economic income for the South Asian economy.