Deadly Garment Factory Inferno in the South Asian nation Claims at Least 16 Victims
No fewer than 16 individuals have lost their lives after a massive fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials stating that the number of victims could climb.
Sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were charred unrecognizable, the firefighters reported.
Grief-stricken relatives assembled outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in seeking their loved ones still missing.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around lunchtime, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse remained ablaze, emergency services said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports indicated.
Emergency responders have not determined which of the two buildings was the origin point.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse stored chemical bleaching agents, synthetic polymers and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Plastic also produces poisonous gases when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed reporters.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also in progress, he noted.
Weeping family members waited outside the charred 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 learned of the fire, I came running. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my child back," he expressed to journalists.
The tragic incident has another time underscored the security issues affecting Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a crucial provider of export earnings for the country.
