Deadly Clothing Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Has Taken a Minimum of 16 Fatalities
No fewer than 16 people have perished after a enormous fire erupted at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials warning that the death toll could increase.
16 bodies have been found but were charred unrecognizable, the fire service stated.
Heartbroken relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on Tuesday in looking for their family members still unaccounted for.
The fire, which started at the factory around midday, was extinguished after three hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, journalistic accounts reported.
Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and industrial peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Synthetic materials also releases hazardous smoke when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still searching for the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury told the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also ongoing, he mentioned.
Crying family members stood outside the charred buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their missing relatives.
Present at the scene is a man searching desperately for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I heard about the fire, I rushed here. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my daughter back," he expressed to reporters.
The catastrophic occurrence has yet again underscored the hazardous conditions affecting Bangladesh's garment industry, which engages millions of workers and is a major contributor to export earnings for the country.
