Tragic Garment Factory Inferno in Bangladesh Has Taken no Fewer than 16 Lives
No fewer than 16 persons have lost their lives after a huge fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services warning that the number of victims could increase.
Sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were charred beyond recognition, the fire service said.
Distraught relatives converged outside the multi-story factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in looking for their loved ones still missing.
The inferno, which broke out at the factory around midday, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services reported.
Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, journalistic accounts reported.
Fire service officials have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.
According to witnesses, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, synthetic polymers and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Synthetic materials also emits poisonous gases when combusted.
Law enforcement and armed forces are still trying to locate the proprietors 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 in progress, he noted.
Crying family members stood outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them holding photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.
Among them is a man searching desperately for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.
"When I heard about the fire, I came running. But I still haven't found her... I just want my loved one back," he told journalists.
The devastating event has once again emphasized the safety concerns plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which engages numerous of workers and is a significant provider of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.