Deadly Apparel Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Lives
A minimum of 16 people have perished after a massive fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services cautioning that the death toll could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were burned beyond recognition, the fire department said.
Distraught relatives assembled outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in seeking their family members still missing.
The blaze, which started at the factory around lunchtime, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse continued to burn, authorities reported.
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 service officials have not ascertained which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Based on eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse stored chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and industrial peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also emits hazardous smoke when ignited.
Security personnel are still searching for the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director the fire service official briefed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also ongoing, he mentioned.
Weeping family members gathered outside the burned buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his family member.
"When I was informed of the fire, I hurried to the scene. But I still haven't found her... I just want my loved one back," he expressed to news media.
The devastating event has yet again underscored the security issues facing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs countless of workers and is a major contributor to foreign revenue for the country.