Deadly Clothing Factory Inferno in the South Asian nation Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
No fewer than 16 individuals have perished after a huge fire erupted at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with authorities cautioning that the number of victims could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been found but were charred impossible to identify, the fire service said.
Distraught relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in looking for their loved ones still not found.
The fire, which started at the factory around noon, was extinguished after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse remained ablaze, officials said.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, news sources indicated.
Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Based on bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained bleaching powder, synthetic polymers and chemical peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also produces hazardous smoke when burned.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed reporters.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he added.
Weeping family members waited outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them holding photographs of their lost relatives.
Included in the crowd 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 haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he told reporters.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again highlighted the safety concerns affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which provides jobs for countless of workers and is a crucial contributor to export earnings for the South Asian economy.
