Devastating Apparel Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Claims a Minimum of 16 Lives
A minimum of 16 persons have lost their lives after a huge fire erupted at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services cautioning that the death toll could rise.
16 bodies have been retrieved but were incinerated impossible to identify, the fire service said.
Heartbroken relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in search of their loved ones still unaccounted for.
The inferno, which started at the factory around midday, was put out after three hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse kept burning, officials 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.
Emergency responders have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained bleaching powder, plastic and industrial peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Polymer products also produces poisonous gases when burned.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the department director told reporters.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also currently underway, he mentioned.
Crying family members waited outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I learned of the fire, I rushed here. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my child back," he expressed to reporters.
The devastating event has once again highlighted the security issues plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs countless of workers and is a crucial source of foreign revenue for the nation.
