Devastating Garment Factory Inferno in the South Asian nation Takes a Minimum of 16 Victims
A minimum of 16 persons have perished after a enormous fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials cautioning that the death toll could increase.
Sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were incinerated beyond recognition, the fire department stated.
Distraught relatives assembled outside the multi-story factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in looking for their family members still unaccounted for.
The blaze, which started at the factory around lunchtime, was put out after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse remained ablaze, emergency services said.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, journalistic accounts indicated.
Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained industrial bleaches, plastic and industrial peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Polymer products also emits hazardous smoke when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still trying to locate the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the department director told journalists.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also ongoing, he mentioned.
Tearful family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them holding photographs of their missing relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his family member.
"When I heard about the fire, I hurried to the scene. But I still haven't found her... I just want my child back," he told news media.
The devastating event has once again emphasized the safety concerns facing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which engages numerous of workers and is a significant provider of export earnings for the South Asian economy.
