Deadly Clothing Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Takes at Least 16 Lives
At least 16 persons have lost their lives after a enormous fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials stating that the fatality count could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were charred impossible to identify, the fire department stated.
Distraught relatives gathered outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in seeking their dear ones still missing.
The inferno, which erupted at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse kept burning, authorities said.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, journalistic accounts indicated.
Fire service officials have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained bleaching powder, synthetic polymers and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Synthetic materials also produces toxic fumes when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the fire service official informed the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also in progress, he mentioned.
Weeping family members gathered outside the charred buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.
Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he stated to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time underscored the hazardous conditions plaguing Bangladesh's garment industry, which provides jobs for countless of workers and is a crucial source of foreign revenue for the country.
