Devastating Clothing Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Takes a Minimum of 16 Fatalities
No fewer than 16 people have perished after a huge fire started at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with authorities warning that the fatality count could climb.
Sixteen bodies have been found but were burned beyond recognition, the fire department said.
Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in seeking their loved ones still not found.
The inferno, which started at the factory around midday, was extinguished after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse remained ablaze, emergency services said.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, news sources said.
Fire service officials have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.
Based on bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Plastic also produces poisonous gases when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still searching for the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury briefed reporters.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he added.
Crying family members waited outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I heard about the fire, I came running. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my loved one back," he stated to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has yet again underscored the security issues plaguing Bangladesh's garment industry, which employs countless of workers and is a crucial provider of export earnings for the country.
