Tragedy in Bangladesh as 16 killed in garment factory fire

Sixteen people were killed, and several others injured in a fire that broke out at a garment factory and an adjacent chemical warehouse in northern Dhaka, Bangladesh.

The fire department’s director, Tajul Islam Chowdhury, said the death toll was likely to rise, and that the cause of the fire was not yet known.

Chowdhury said that 16 bodies were recovered from the second and third floors of the garment factory and that the death toll is expected to rise as the search continues.

Another Fire and Civil Defense official quoted eyewitnesses as saying that the fire started on the third floor of the four-story factory in the Mirpur area, north of Dhaka, before spreading to a nearby chemical warehouse.

The worst fire in Bangladesh occurred in 2012 on the outskirts of Dhaka in a textile factory producing clothing for export to Western countries. At least 111 workers died and more than 200 were injured.