Deadly Clothing Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Claims a Minimum of 16 Victims
At least 16 persons have lost their lives after a massive fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with authorities warning that the death toll could increase.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were incinerated unrecognizable, the fire department stated.
Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in looking for their dear ones still not found.
The blaze, which broke out at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after three hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services confirmed.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports said.
Fire service officials have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.
Per bystanders, the chemical warehouse housed bleaching powder, synthetic polymers and chemical peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also emits toxic fumes when burned.
Police and military officers are still searching for the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the department director informed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also ongoing, he noted.
Tearful family members waited outside the charred buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his family member.
"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 stated to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time highlighted the security issues facing Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which provides jobs for countless of workers and is a significant provider of economic income for the South Asian economy.
