Deadly Apparel Factory Inferno in the South Asian nation Takes no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
A minimum of 16 persons have lost their lives after a massive fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with officials stating that the number of victims could climb.
16 bodies have been retrieved but were burned impossible to identify, the fire department said.
Heartbroken relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in seeking their family members still not found.
The inferno, which started at the factory around midday, was put out after multiple hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services reported.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, journalistic accounts indicated.
Fire service officials have not established which of the two buildings was the origin point.
According to eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Polymer products also produces poisonous gases when burned.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still trying to locate the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director the fire service official told journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also currently underway, he noted.
Tearful family members stood outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their lost relatives.
Among them is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I learned of the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my child back," he told news media.
The devastating event has once again emphasized the security issues facing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs numerous of workers and is a crucial contributor to export earnings for the nation.
