Deadly Apparel Factory Blaze in the South Asian nation Has Taken a Minimum of 16 Lives
No fewer than 16 people have died after a enormous fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services warning that the number of victims could climb.
16 bodies have been found but were burned beyond recognition, the fire service said.
Grief-stricken relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in looking for their loved ones still missing.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around midday, was put out after multiple hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse kept burning, emergency services reported.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, news sources indicated.
Fire service officials have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per witnesses, the chemical warehouse stored chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and industrial peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Plastic also produces poisonous gases when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official informed reporters.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also currently underway, he added.
Crying family members gathered outside the burned buildings, many of them clutching 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 loved one back," he expressed to journalists.
The tragic incident has another time underscored the hazardous conditions plaguing Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which engages countless of workers and is a major provider of export earnings for the country.
