Tragic Apparel Factory Blaze in the South Asian nation Takes a Minimum of 16 Lives
At least 16 individuals have died after a enormous fire erupted at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with officials warning that the fatality count could climb.
A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were burned impossible to identify, the fire department reported.
Grief-stricken relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in Mirpur, Dhaka on that day in seeking their family members still unaccounted for.
The blaze, which erupted at the factory around lunchtime, was brought under control after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services reported.
Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been entirely put out, journalistic accounts said.
Fire department authorities have not established which of the two buildings caught fire first.
Per eyewitnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Plastic also produces poisonous gases when burned.
Police and military officers are still trying to locate the owners of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official briefed reporters.
An investigation on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also currently underway, he mentioned.
Crying family members gathered outside the charred buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their lost 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 haven't found her... I just want my child back," he expressed to news media.
The catastrophic occurrence has another time emphasized the security issues affecting Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which engages millions of workers and is a significant contributor to foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.
