Tragic Clothing Factory Blaze in the South Asian nation Has Taken at Least 16 Fatalities

A minimum of 16 people have died after a huge fire erupted at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services stating that the death toll could rise.

Sixteen bodies have been recovered but were incinerated beyond recognition, the fire service said.

Heartbroken relatives converged outside the four-storey factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in looking for their loved ones still not found.

The blaze, which broke out at the factory around noon, was extinguished after several 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 reported.

Fire service officials have not determined which of the two buildings ignited initially.

According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse housed chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Plastic also produces hazardous smoke when combusted.

Police and military officers are still searching for the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official informed journalists.

An investigation on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also in progress, he added.

Tearful family members gathered outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.

Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.

"When I was informed of the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my daughter back," he told news media.

The tragic incident has once again underscored the safety concerns plaguing Bangladesh's clothing sector, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a major contributor to foreign revenue for the South Asian economy.