Deadly Clothing Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Takes at Least 16 Victims

A minimum of 16 persons have lost their lives after a enormous fire started at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services cautioning that the number of victims could climb.

16 bodies have been retrieved but were burned beyond recognition, the fire service stated.

Grief-stricken relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in looking for their family members still not found.

The inferno, which started at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after multiple hours. But an nearby chemical warehouse continued to burn, emergency services reported.

Up until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports said.

Emergency responders have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.

According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained bleaching powder, plastic materials and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Plastic also emits toxic fumes when combusted.

Police and military officers are still attempting to find the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, fire department chief Mohammad Tajul Islam Chowdhury told journalists.

An investigation on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also currently underway, he added.

Crying family members gathered outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for relatives.

Included in the crowd 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 daughter back," he expressed to news media.

The catastrophic occurrence has another time emphasized the hazardous conditions plaguing Bangladesh's apparel manufacturing, which employs millions of workers and is a major source of economic income for the country.