Tragic Apparel Factory Inferno in the South Asian nation Claims a Minimum of 16 Fatalities
At least 16 persons have perished after a huge fire erupted at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services warning that the number of victims could climb.
Sixteen bodies have been found but were incinerated unrecognizable, the fire service said.
Heartbroken relatives gathered outside the four-level factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in seeking their loved ones still unaccounted for.
The inferno, which started at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after three hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse continued to burn, officials confirmed.
As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports said.
Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings ignited initially.
According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse housed industrial bleaches, plastic and chemical peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Synthetic materials also releases poisonous gases when combusted.
Security personnel are still searching for the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director the fire service official informed journalists.
An inquiry on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he noted.
Crying family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Included in the crowd is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.
"When I heard about the fire, I hurried to the scene. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my loved one back," he stated to news media.
The devastating event has another time underscored the hazardous conditions affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs numerous of workers and is a significant source of economic income for the South Asian economy.
