Devastating Garment Factory Fire in Bangladesh Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Lives
At least 16 individuals have perished after a huge fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services stating that the fatality count could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been found but were burned unrecognizable, the firefighters stated.
Grief-stricken relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their dear ones still unaccounted for.
The blaze, which broke out at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after three hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse kept burning, emergency services reported.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, journalistic accounts said.
Fire department authorities have not determined which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Per bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained bleaching powder, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Synthetic materials also emits poisonous gases when burned.
Security personnel are still searching for the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official briefed journalists.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also ongoing, he noted.
Weeping family members stood outside the burned buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their lost relatives.
Present at the scene is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his family member.
"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still haven't found her... I just want my loved one back," he stated to reporters.
The devastating event has another time highlighted the hazardous conditions facing Bangladesh's garment industry, which employs numerous of workers and is a major contributor to export earnings for the nation.
