Devastating Apparel Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Claims a Minimum of 16 Fatalities
At least 16 individuals have perished after a enormous fire erupted at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with authorities stating that the fatality count could rise.
Sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were incinerated impossible to identify, the firefighters reported.
Distraught relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on Tuesday in looking for their dear ones still missing.
The blaze, which broke out at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after multiple hours. But an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn, officials reported.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports indicated.
Emergency responders have not established which of the two buildings ignited initially.
According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse stored industrial bleaches, plastic and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also releases poisonous gases when burned.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still attempting to find the owners of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury briefed the media.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also in progress, he added.
Weeping family members gathered outside the charred buildings, many of them holding photographs of their missing relatives.
Among them is a man searching desperately for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my child back," he expressed to news media.
The devastating event has yet again emphasized the safety concerns affecting Bangladesh's garment industry, which employs countless of workers and is a crucial provider of foreign revenue for the nation.
