Devastating Garment Factory Fire in Bangladesh Takes no Fewer than 16 Victims
No fewer than 16 people have died after a enormous fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services cautioning that the death toll could increase.
16 bodies have been retrieved but were charred beyond recognition, the fire service stated.
Heartbroken relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in search of their dear ones still not found.
The inferno, which erupted at the factory around noon, was brought under control after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn, authorities said.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, journalistic accounts reported.
Fire service officials have not determined which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained industrial bleaches, synthetic polymers and chemical peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Synthetic materials also releases hazardous smoke when burned.
Police and military officers are still attempting to find the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the department director briefed the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also ongoing, he noted.
Crying family members stood outside the burned buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man searching desperately for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I heard about the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my child back," he stated to journalists.
The tragic incident has another time highlighted the safety concerns plaguing Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a major source of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
