Deadly Garment Factory Fire in Bangladesh Claims no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
No fewer than 16 individuals have perished after a enormous fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials warning that the number of victims could climb.
16 bodies have been recovered but were burned impossible to identify, the firefighters reported.
Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in seeking their family members still not found.
The fire, which started at the factory around noon, was brought under control after several hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse remained ablaze, officials confirmed.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, journalistic accounts indicated.
Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse stored industrial bleaches, plastic and industrial peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Plastic also emits hazardous smoke when combusted.
Security personnel are still searching for the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed reporters.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also ongoing, he added.
Tearful family members gathered outside the burned buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I heard about the fire, I rushed here. But I still haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he told reporters.
The devastating event has another time highlighted the security issues affecting Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which employs countless of workers and is a major contributor to foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.