Devastating Garment Factory Fire in Bangladesh Claims a Minimum of 16 Lives
At least 16 persons have lost their lives after a enormous fire erupted at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services stating that the fatality count could climb.
Sixteen bodies have been recovered but were burned beyond recognition, the fire service said.
Heartbroken relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in search of their loved ones still not found.
The fire, which started at the factory around lunchtime, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse remained ablaze, officials reported.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, news sources reported.
Emergency responders have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to witnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also emits toxic fumes when ignited.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still trying to locate the owners of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also ongoing, he mentioned.
Crying family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them holding photographs of their lost relatives.
Among them is a man searching desperately for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I heard about 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 news media.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time emphasized the safety concerns affecting Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which provides jobs for countless of workers and is a significant source of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
