Thirteen killed in Mirpur Styrofoam factory fire:Daily Star

The father of a factory worker breaks down in tears and calls home to tell about the devastating fire at his daughter's factory at the capital's Mirpur-1 yesterday. Photo: Palash Khan At least 13 people, including two women, were burnt to death as a fire swept through a Styrofoam package factory in Mirpur-1 yesterday. Locals said the entire six-storey factory building called APCCO Complex, close t
o Sony Cinema Hall, erupted in flames following an explosion around 5:25pm. At least 64 workers were inside the building when the fire broke out. “There was a loud bang. Later, I saw a van burning and flames on the top of the building,” eyewitness Zahid Hossain told The Daily Star. The van parked at the main gate of the building caught fire as gas cylinders exploded on the ground floor, said fire fighters. They had pulled out eight charred bodies from the ground floor. Factory worker Imran Hossain Khan said, “Many of the workers came out but some got trapped inside as the fire engulfed the building quickly.” He said 150 people worked there in two shifts. Several workers of the factory suffered severe burn injuries. Tawhidul Islam, 50, a security guard at the building who sustained 28 percent burn injuries, said, “Kamal Hossain, I and another security guard were having tea at the gate of the building. The van was loading there. We heard a loud bang and came running out of the building. But the tongues of fire already burnt me and Kamal.” Advertisement Kamal, also a security guard, received 35 percent burn injuries and is in a critical condition, said Burn Institute of DMCH sources. Rabiul, an injured, said about 40 workers of the factory were working on the ground floor when the fire broke out. After hearing the explosion, most  of the workers escaped through windows and other openings of the building. One of the deceased was identified as Rashida Begum, 37, of Nalchity upazila of Jhalakathi. Her son Russell, 19, was working on the first floor and he escaped unhurt. Eighteen fire engines doused the fire in about an hour and a half. Inside the building, the top floor of which was made of corrugated iron sheets, there were flammable materials, plastics and gas cylinders, believed to be the reason behind the fire spreading fast. At the scene, law enforcers were struggling to control hundreds of onlookers crowding the spot. A              wall of the factory collapsed as over enthusiastic bystanders tried to                enter the building after the fire was put out. During a spot visit, at least five mangled and exploded gas cylinders were seen. There were cracks on several walls of the building. DMC morgue sources said most of the deceased had been burnt beyond recognition. A three member probe committee was formed by the fire service. The committee is to submit its report in three days.