Deadly Clothing Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Takes no Fewer than 16 Lives
At least 16 persons have perished after a massive fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with authorities cautioning that the number of victims could rise.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were burned beyond recognition, the fire service stated.
Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in search of their family members still unaccounted for.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around midday, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse remained ablaze, officials confirmed.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, news sources indicated.
Fire service officials have not established which of the two buildings was the origin point.
Based on witnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Synthetic materials also emits poisonous gases when burned.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also ongoing, he noted.
Crying family members gathered outside the burned buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.
Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I was informed of the fire, I came running. But I still haven't found her... I just want my child back," he stated to reporters.
The tragic incident has another time highlighted the safety concerns facing Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which provides jobs for numerous of workers and is a crucial source of foreign revenue for the nation.
