A tragic fire at a garment factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, has claimed the lives of at least 16 people, with authorities fearing the death toll may rise. The devastating blaze broke out at the four-storey factory and, although extinguished after three hours, an adjacent chemical warehouse continued to burn. Bodies recovered have been so severely burned that DNA testing is required before they can be identified and returned to their families.
Distraught relatives have gathered at the site, desperately searching for loved ones who remain missing. Eyewitnesses reported that the chemical warehouse stored hazardous materials like bleaching powder, plastic, and hydrogen peroxide, substances known to intensify fires and release toxic fumes when burned.
Fire service officials indicated that the significant number of casualties was likely due to the inhalation of highly toxic gas, exacerbated by the factory’s roof door being found locked. Investigations are underway to determine the exact cause of the fire and to ascertain the legality of the chemical warehouse’s operations, which reportedly lacked essential fire safety clearances and operating licenses.
This incident underscores the persistent issue of industrial safety in Bangladesh, a nation where similar tragedies, often attributed to inadequate safety standards and poor infrastructure, have occurred with alarming frequency. Past disasters, including a factory fire in 2021 that killed 52 and the catastrophic Rana Plaza collapse in 2013 which claimed over 1,100 lives, serve as grim reminders of the vulnerabilities within the country’s industrial sector.