Deadly Apparel Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Claims at Least 16 Lives
No fewer than 16 persons have perished after a huge fire started at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services cautioning that the death toll could increase.
16 bodies have been found but were burned beyond recognition, the fire department said.
Distraught relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on Tuesday in search of their dear ones still unaccounted for.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around midday, was brought under control after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services confirmed.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, news sources said.
Fire service officials have not established which of the two buildings was the origin point.
According to eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Synthetic materials also emits hazardous smoke when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official informed journalists.
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 missing relatives.
Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I heard about the fire, I hurried to the scene. But I still haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he told news media.
The catastrophic occurrence has yet again highlighted the security issues plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which engages countless of workers and is a crucial source of foreign revenue for the nation.
