Devastating Garment Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Has Taken at Least 16 Victims
No fewer than 16 people have lost their lives after a massive fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials stating that the death toll could increase.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were incinerated unrecognizable, the fire department said.
Grief-stricken relatives assembled outside the four-storey factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their family members still unaccounted for.
The fire, which erupted at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after three hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse continued to burn, officials reported.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, media reports reported.
Fire service officials have not determined which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse housed bleaching powder, synthetic polymers and industrial peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Polymer products also releases poisonous gases when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury told journalists.
An probe on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also ongoing, he mentioned.
Tearful family members stood outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their lost relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his family member.
"When I was informed of the fire, I came running. But I still haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he stated to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has yet again highlighted the hazardous conditions affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs countless of workers and is a crucial source of export earnings for the nation.
