Tragic Garment Factory Blaze in the South Asian nation Claims no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
At least 16 persons have lost their lives after a enormous fire erupted at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with officials warning that the fatality count could rise.
16 bodies have been recovered but were burned beyond recognition, the fire department reported.
Distraught relatives assembled outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their family members still missing.
The fire, which erupted at the factory around noon, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse kept burning, officials reported.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, news sources said.
Fire department authorities have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Based on bystanders, the chemical warehouse stored industrial bleaches, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also releases hazardous smoke when burned.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director the fire service official told journalists.
An probe on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also in progress, he added.
Crying family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I learned of the fire, I rushed here. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my daughter back," he told news media.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again underscored the safety concerns plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which engages countless of workers and is a significant contributor to economic income for the nation.
