Devastating Apparel Factory Fire in Bangladesh Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
A minimum of 16 people have perished after a enormous fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials stating that the number of victims could rise.
A total of sixteen bodies have been found but were charred beyond recognition, the firefighters stated.
Distraught relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their dear ones still unaccounted for.
The fire, which broke out at the factory around midday, was extinguished after three hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse kept burning, authorities said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports said.
Emergency responders have not ascertained which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per witnesses, the chemical warehouse stored industrial bleaches, synthetic polymers and industrial peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also emits toxic fumes when combusted.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the department director told the media.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also ongoing, he mentioned.
Weeping family members waited outside the charred buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their lost relatives.
Present at the scene is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I was informed of the fire, I hurried to the scene. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my loved one back," he told journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has yet again underscored the hazardous conditions affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a major provider of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
