Devastating Clothing Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Fatalities
No fewer than 16 persons have perished after a huge fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with authorities warning that the death toll could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been recovered but were charred beyond recognition, the fire service said.
Distraught relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in search of their dear ones still not found.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around noon, was extinguished after several hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse kept burning, emergency services said.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, media reports reported.
Fire department authorities have not determined which of the two buildings was the origin point.
Based on bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained industrial bleaches, synthetic polymers and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also produces poisonous gases when burned.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still searching for the operators of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief the department director told journalists.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also in progress, he added.
Crying family members stood outside the charred buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man seeking urgently for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I learned of the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my child back," he expressed to journalists.
The catastrophic occurrence has once again highlighted the hazardous conditions facing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs millions of workers and is a crucial provider of export earnings for the South Asian economy.
