Devastating Clothing Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Takes at Least 16 Fatalities
A minimum of 16 individuals have perished after a enormous fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services cautioning that the death toll could rise.
A total of sixteen bodies have been recovered but were charred unrecognizable, the fire department reported.
Distraught relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in seeking their dear ones still not found.
The inferno, which started at the factory around noon, was put out after three hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse remained ablaze, authorities said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, media reports reported.
Fire department authorities have not established which of the two buildings ignited initially.
Per witnesses, the chemical warehouse contained industrial bleaches, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Plastic also produces poisonous gases when combusted.
Police and military officers are still searching for the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official briefed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also in progress, he added.
Weeping family members waited outside the charred buildings, many of them holding photographs of their missing relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I was informed of the fire, I came running. But I still haven't found her... I just want my child back," he expressed to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time underscored the security issues plaguing Bangladesh's garment industry, which employs numerous of workers and is a major provider of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
