Tragic Clothing Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
At least 16 individuals have perished after a huge fire started at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services stating that the fatality count could rise.
16 bodies have been recovered but were charred unrecognizable, the fire department said.
Distraught relatives converged outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in search of their loved ones still missing.
The blaze, which broke out at the factory around midday, was put out after multiple hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse kept burning, emergency services said.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, media reports said.
Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.
Based on bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, synthetic polymers and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Polymer products also produces hazardous smoke when combusted.
Police and military officers are still attempting to find the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury briefed journalists.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also currently underway, he added.
Weeping family members gathered outside the charred buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I learned of the fire, I came running. But I still have been unable to find her... I just want my loved one back," he stated to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again underscored the security issues affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs countless of workers and is a major source of export earnings for the country.
