Devastating Garment Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Has Taken at Least 16 Fatalities
A minimum of 16 people have lost their lives after a huge fire broke out at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with authorities cautioning that the death toll could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were charred unrecognizable, the fire service reported.
Distraught relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on Tuesday in seeking their family members still not found.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around midday, was brought under control after several hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services reported.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, news sources reported.
Fire department authorities have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per bystanders, the chemical warehouse stored chemical bleaching agents, plastic and industrial peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Plastic also emits toxic fumes when combusted.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed reporters.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also currently underway, he mentioned.
Weeping family members gathered outside the burned buildings, many of them holding photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Present at the scene is a man searching desperately for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I was informed of the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my loved one back," he told reporters.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time underscored the security issues facing Bangladesh's garment industry, which employs numerous of workers and is a significant contributor to export earnings for the country.
