At least 13 people, including two women, were killed and more than 12 others injured today after a devastating fire broke out in a plastic factory in Bangladesh's capital.
The fire at the five-storey plastic goods manufacturing factory in Mirpur started at around 5:45 pm (local time) and was brought under control in around two hours.
At least 13 people, including two women, were burnt to death as a devastating fire swept through a plastic packaging factory at Mirpur-1 in Dhaka this evening, The Daily Star reported.
All the bodies were sent to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital.
"I heard a loud explosion inside the building. Later, I saw a covered van burning while a flame of fire on the top of the building," a witness said.
The cause of the fire is not yet known, but firefighters suspect it might have been triggered by the exploding of a gas cylinder.
Fire Service Director General Ali Ahammed Khan said the death toll might rise.
Around 20 firefighting units were pressed into service to bring the blaze under control.
Bangladesh ids prone to fires as the country's factories lack safety standards and fire-fighting tools.
In November 2012, at least 111 garment workers were killed when a blaze devastated a nine-storey garment factory outside Dhaka.
