Devastating Garment Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Takes a Minimum of 16 Victims
No fewer than 16 persons have perished after a massive fire erupted at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with authorities stating that the number of victims could rise.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were incinerated beyond recognition, the fire department reported.
Heartbroken relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their family members still unaccounted for.
The blaze, which started at the factory around midday, was extinguished after three hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services confirmed.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, media reports said.
Emergency responders have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.
According to witnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and industrial peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Plastic also releases hazardous smoke when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still searching for the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the fire service official briefed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also currently underway, he noted.
Tearful family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them holding 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 came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my child back," he expressed to news media.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again highlighted the hazardous conditions plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs millions of workers and is a major provider of export earnings for the South Asian economy.
