Today's Edition
DHAKA (REUTERS)
Toxic gas and a locked door that barred access to a roof were responsible for most of the deaths in a devastating fire in a Bangladesh garment factory and an adjoining chemical warehouse, a fire official said on Wednesday.
The disaster in Dhaka on Tuesday killed 16 and critically injured several more, casting a spotlight on industrial safety.
Thick smoke rose from the charred structure as firefighters carried out cooling operations, a day after the blaze ripped through a four-storey building and an adjacent warehouse packed with chemicals.
"The victims could not escape because the roof door was locked," said fire service official Talha Bin Zasim. "Most of them died from inhaling toxic gas, rather than burns."
The fire was brought under control on Wednesday afternoon, nearly 27 hours after the deadly blaze broke out, as toxic gas and chemical fumes slowed down the operation.
Dozens of relatives waited outside the blackened building, some clutching photographs of those missing. Identification of the bodies, many of which were badly burned, is being carried out at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
The government has launched an inquiry to determine the cause of the fire and identify those responsible for safety lapses.
Many workers in garment factories nearby fell ill from inhaling the smoke that shrouded the site in the capital's Mirpur area. Authorities later ordered all surrounding factories to shut down temporarily as a safety measure.
Bangladesh is the world’s second-largest exporter of apparel. The sector supplies major retailers such as Walmart, Gap and H&M, employs 4 million people and generates about $40 billion a year, or more than a tenth of GDP.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) said that the facilities affected by Tuesday's fire were neither BGMEA members nor part of the formal, export-oriented garment sector. It urged authorities to strengthen oversight and take strict action against illegal warehouses operating outside regulatory control.
