Locked roof door, toxic gas caused most deaths in Mirpur fire: Fire Service
The deaths of 16 people in the fire at Mirpur's Shialbari area were primarily caused by the spread of toxic gas and the roof door of the building being locked, according to the fire service.
Officials suspect that the explosion in a nearby chemical warehouse released poisonous toxic gas, which proved to be fatal for the victims.
During an ongoing operation to bring the fire under control and conduct a search at the garment factory building and the adjacent chemical warehouse on Tuesday night, Fire Service and Civil Defence Director (Operations and Maintenance) Lt Col Tajul Islam Chowdhury said, "The fire quickly reached the 'developed stage' or third phase, causing victims to lose consciousness.
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"Additionally, the roof door of the garment factory building from where the bodies were recovered was found locked with two padlocks."
As a result, workers couldn't escape to the roof.
"When we arrived, we found the doors still locked," he added.
Preliminary findings also suggest that neither the garment factory nor the chemical warehouse had any fire safety certification, said the official.
This is not the first time a locked roof door has been blamed for such a tragedy.
On 8 July 2021, a fire at the six-storey building of Hashem Foods and Beverages Ltd in Rupganj's Kornogop area claimed 54 lives, 51 of whom died from burns.
That building's roof door was also found locked during the incident.
