Deadly Apparel Factory Blaze in the South Asian nation Takes at Least 16 Lives
A minimum of 16 persons have died after a huge fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services stating that the fatality count could rise.
Sixteen bodies have been found but were incinerated impossible to identify, the firefighters reported.
Distraught relatives gathered outside the multi-story factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their family members still not found.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around noon, was put out after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse kept burning, authorities said.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, media reports reported.
Emergency responders have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.
According to eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and industrial peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Synthetic materials also produces poisonous gases when ignited.
Police and military officers are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed journalists.
An probe on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also ongoing, he added.
Crying family members waited outside the charred buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my daughter back," he expressed to journalists.
The devastating event has another time underscored the safety concerns facing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a major provider of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
