Devastating Clothing Factory Blaze in Bangladesh Has Taken a Minimum of 16 Fatalities

At least 16 people have perished after a enormous fire started at a garment factory in Bangladesh, with authorities cautioning that the death toll could climb.

16 bodies have been found but were incinerated unrecognizable, the fire service reported.

Distraught relatives gathered outside the four-storey factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on Tuesday in looking for their family members still unaccounted for.

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

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

Fire department authorities have not ascertained which of the two buildings caught fire first.

According to bystanders, the chemical warehouse stored bleaching powder, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can accelerate fires. Synthetic materials also releases poisonous gases when burned.

Law enforcement and armed forces are still searching for the proprietors of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the department director told journalists.

An investigation on whether the warehouse was functioning with proper authorization is also ongoing, he noted.

Crying family members stood outside the charred buildings, many of them holding photographs of their lost relatives.

Included in the crowd is a man looking frantically for his daughter, his loved one.

"When I learned of the fire, I came running. But I still cannot locate her... I just want my daughter back," he expressed to journalists.

The devastating event has yet again highlighted the safety concerns affecting Bangladesh's clothing sector, which employs countless of workers and is a major contributor to economic income for the country.