Devastating Apparel Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Lives
At least 16 persons have perished after a massive fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with officials cautioning that the number of victims could climb.
Sixteen bodies have been recovered but were burned unrecognizable, the firefighters stated.
Grief-stricken relatives gathered outside the multi-story factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in looking for their family members still unaccounted for.
The inferno, which erupted at the factory around noon, was extinguished after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse kept burning, officials reported.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, news sources said.
Emergency responders have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to witnesses, the chemical warehouse contained industrial bleaches, synthetic polymers and industrial peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Plastic also releases toxic fumes when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the department director told reporters.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also in progress, he mentioned.
Tearful family members gathered outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their unaccounted for 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 cannot locate her... I just want my child back," he stated to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time underscored the safety concerns plaguing Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which engages numerous of workers and is a major contributor to export earnings for the nation.