Deadly Garment Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Claims a Minimum of 16 Fatalities

No fewer than 16 persons have lost their lives after a massive fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with authorities cautioning that the fatality count could increase.

A total of sixteen bodies have been retrieved but were burned impossible to identify, the firefighters stated.

Heartbroken relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in seeking their loved ones still missing.

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

As late as 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) yesterday, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been completely doused, journalistic accounts said.

Fire service officials have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.

Per witnesses, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, synthetic polymers and industrial peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Plastic also releases hazardous smoke when burned.

Law enforcement and armed forces are still searching for the owners of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the department director informed journalists.

An investigation on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also in progress, he mentioned.

Tearful family members waited outside the burned buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their missing relatives.

Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his family member.

"When I was informed of the fire, I rushed here. But I still haven't found her... I just want my daughter back," he expressed to journalists.

The tragic incident has once again emphasized the safety concerns facing Bangladesh's garment industry, which engages countless of workers and is a significant provider of foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.