Devastating Garment Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Takes at Least 16 Lives
At least 16 people have lost their lives after a huge fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with officials cautioning that the number of victims could increase.
16 bodies have been recovered but were charred beyond recognition, the fire service said.
Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in search of their dear ones still not found.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around midday, was put out after several hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse kept burning, emergency services reported.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, news sources reported.
Emergency responders have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also releases poisonous gases when combusted.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the owners of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official told the media.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also in progress, he added.
Crying family members stood outside the burned buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their lost 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 haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he told news media.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again underscored the hazardous conditions affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which engages countless of workers and is a crucial provider of foreign revenue for the country.
