Bangladesh: 1 dead, dozens hurt in factory fire

By Md. Kamruzzaman

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) - At least one worker died and dozens more were injured in a fire at a chemical warehouse of a garments factory in Bangladesh on Saturday.

The blaze at the factory in the central Gazipur district was put out after an hour-long operation, Abdul Hamid Miah, a fire department official, told Anadolu Agency.

He said the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.

Khandakar Imam Hossain, a police officer, confirmed one fatality but did not give an exact figure on the number of wounded.

The victim was identified as Masum Shikder, a 23-year-old man hailing from the capital Dhaka’s Dohar area.

Local media reports said at least 42 workers were injured in the fire, with 12 admitted to the country’s main burns hospital in Dhaka and the rest being treated at a facility in Gazipur.

One person was killed and several more injured in a fire at a chemical factory in the same area last month.

Shoddy infrastructure and lax safety measures have led to hundreds of casualties in fire incidents at industrial units across Bangladesh.

At least 2,000 workers and other staff have died in at least 26 massive blazes in factories over the past two decades, according to data from the International Labor Organization and other agencies cited in a report by local daily Jugantor.