Devastating Garment Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Claims at Least 16 Lives
No fewer than 16 persons have died after a enormous fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials warning that the fatality count could rise.
16 bodies have been found but were incinerated impossible to identify, the fire service reported.
Distraught relatives assembled outside the multi-story factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in looking for their family members still not found.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around noon, was put out after several hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn, authorities confirmed.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, media reports indicated.
Fire department authorities have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Based on eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, synthetic polymers and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also produces hazardous smoke when combusted.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the department director told the media.
An probe on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also in progress, he noted.
Weeping family members stood outside the charred buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.
Among them is a man searching desperately for his daughter, his family member.
"When I heard about the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my loved one back," he stated to journalists.
The tragic incident has another time underscored the hazardous conditions facing Bangladesh's garment industry, which engages millions of workers and is a major provider of export earnings for the country.
