The death toll in the factory fire at Gazipur’s Tongi has climbed to 33 as four more bodies have been found under the debris.
The fatal fire on Saturday morning caused the five-storey factory building of Tampaco Foils Ltd to collapse.
The flames in the factory were not doused completely. Fire was still being spotted here and there on Monday.
The army has joined the firefighters in the operation.
A military spokesperson said two bodies have been recovered by soldiers on Monday while another two were recovered earlier by firefighters.
Around 2pm, a body was pulled out from under a collapsed floor, said the Inter Services Public Relations Director Lt Col Rashidul Hasan.
An hour earlier, army rescuers found another body, said Tongi police OC Md Firoz Talukder.
Gazipur fire service’s Deputy Assistant Director Md Aktaruzzaman said they recovered two bodies earlier in the day before the army turned up.
Identities of the latest victims are yet to be confirmed.
Owned by former BNP MP from Sylhet Syed Mokbul Hussain, the Tampaco Foils packaging factory was set up in 1977.
The factory employs around 450 workers and some 75 people were working when the boiler exploded and started the fire.
The DMCH has conducted autopsy on 25 bodies on Sunday and handed them over to the relatives.
“More than half of them died due to impact of the explosion while others were burnt to death,” said DMCH Forensic Department’s Assistant Professor Md Sohel Mahmud.
Doctors at DMCH said nine persons were being treated at the hospital until Sunday for injuries sustained due to impact.
The labour ministry has announced Tk 200,000 cash assistance for families of the dead victims.
Gazipur’s local administration is providing Tk 20,000 for the dead victims’ families while Tk 5,000 for those injured.
The factory’s owner has also assured compensation for families of the victims.
The Gazipur district administration has formed a five-member probe body to investigate the mishap.The fire service and the government’s Factory Inspection Department have also launched separate investigations.
Source: Bd news24
