Tragic Garment Factory Inferno in the South Asian nation Claims a Minimum of 16 Victims
A minimum of 16 people have lost their lives after a enormous fire broke out at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services warning that the number of victims could climb.
Sixteen bodies have been found but were incinerated impossible to identify, the firefighters stated.
Distraught relatives converged outside the multi-story factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in search of their loved ones still unaccounted for.
The blaze, which erupted at the factory around noon, was extinguished after multiple hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse kept burning, officials confirmed.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, journalistic accounts said.
Fire service officials have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained industrial bleaches, plastic and industrial peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Plastic also produces hazardous smoke when ignited.
Security personnel are still trying to locate the operators of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury informed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he added.
Crying family members gathered outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them holding photographs of their missing relatives.
Among them is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my loved one back," he expressed to journalists.
The tragic incident has once again underscored the security issues plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs numerous of workers and is a crucial contributor to foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
