Deadly Clothing Factory Blaze in the South Asian nation Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Victims
No fewer than 16 persons have died after a enormous fire broke out at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with officials warning that the number of victims could rise.
A total of sixteen bodies have been found but were burned beyond recognition, the firefighters stated.
Distraught relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in search of their loved ones still not found.
The blaze, which erupted at the factory around lunchtime, was put out after three hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services reported.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports indicated.
Fire service officials have not ascertained which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and industrial peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also emits toxic fumes when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the department director informed reporters.
An probe on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he added.
Tearful family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them holding photographs of their lost relatives.
Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my daughter back," he told journalists.
The devastating event has once again underscored the security issues affecting Bangladesh's garment industry, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a major provider of export earnings for the South Asian economy.
