Deadly Clothing Factory Fire in the South Asian nation Has Taken at Least 16 Victims

No fewer than 16 persons have died after a enormous fire started at a apparel factory in Bangladesh, with emergency services warning that the death toll could climb.

Sixteen bodies have been recovered but were incinerated impossible to identify, the fire service said.

Grief-stricken relatives assembled outside the four-level factory in the Mirpur district of Dhaka on that day in search of their dear ones still missing.

The fire, which erupted at the factory around lunchtime, was put out after multiple hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse remained ablaze, officials reported.

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

Emergency responders have not ascertained which of the two buildings was the origin point.

Per bystanders, the chemical warehouse contained chemical bleaching agents, plastic materials and hydrogen peroxide, all of which can worsen fires. Polymer products also releases hazardous smoke when ignited.

Police and military officers are still attempting to find the owners of the factory and the warehouse, fire service director the department director told journalists.

An probe on whether the warehouse was running according to regulations is also ongoing, he mentioned.

Tearful family members stood outside the charred buildings, many of them clutching photographs of their unaccounted for 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 loved one back," he told journalists.

The devastating event has another time emphasized the hazardous conditions plaguing Bangladesh's garment industry, which employs countless of workers and is a crucial source of export earnings for the nation.