Bangladesh factory building collapse kills over 70, injures hundreds

[LiuKang]

Bangladesh factory building collapse kills over 70, injures hundreds

People rescue garment workers trapped under rubble at the Rana Plaza building after it collapsed, in Savar, 30 km (19 miles) outside Dhaka April 24, 2013. REUTERS/Andrew Biraj

DHAKA | Wed Apr 24, 2013 4:40am EDT

(Reuters) - An eight-storey block housing factories and a shopping center collapsed on the outskirts of the Bangladeshi capital on Wednesday, killing more than 70 people and injuring hundreds, a government official said.

Fire fighters and army personnel worked frantically through the morning at the Rana Plaza building in Savar, 30 km (19 miles) outside Dhaka, to rescue people trapped inside.

One fireman told Reuters that about 2,000 people were in the building when the upper floors jolted down on top of each other.

Bangladesh's booming garment industry has been plagued by fires and other accidents for years, despite a drive to improve safety standards. In November last year, 112 workers were killed in a blaze at a factory in an industrial suburb of Dhaka.

"It looks like an earthquake has struck here," said one resident as he looked on at the chaotic scene of smashed concrete and ambulances making their way through the crowds of workers and wailing relatives of those still inside.

"I was at work on the third floor, and then suddenly I heard a deafening sound, but couldn't understand what was happening. I ran and was hit by something on my head," said Sohra Begum a worker at one of the garment factories.

M.M. Niazuddin, the government's health secretary, told Reuters that at least 76 people were confirmed dead. Another official said hundreds were being treated for injuries.

Mohammad Asaduzzaman, in charge of the area's police station, said factory owners appeared to have ignored a warning not to allow their workers into the building after a crack was detected in the block on Tuesday.

Buildings in the crowded city of Dhaka are sometimes erected without permission and many do not comply with construction regulations. Dozens died when a garment factory collapsed in the same area eight years ago.

(Reporting by Andrew Biraj, Serajul Quadir and Ruma Paul; Writing by John Chalmers; Editing by Nick Macfie)

 

[LiuKang]

People mourn for their relatives, who are trapped inside the rubble of the collapsed Rana Plaza building,
in Savar, 30 km (19 miles) outside Dhaka April 24, 2013. REUTERS/Andrew Biraj

Crowds gather at the collapsed Rana Plaza building as people rescue garment workers trapped in the rubble,
in Savar, 30 km (19 miles) outside Dhaka April 24, 2013. REUTERS/Andrew Biraj


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[LiuKang]

People rescue garment workers trapped under rubble at the Rana Plaza building after it collapsed,
in Savar, 30 km (19 miles) outside Dhaka April 24, 2013. REUTERS/Andrew Biraj

People rescue a garment worker who was trapped under the rubble of the collapsed Rana Plaza building
in Savar, 30 km (19 miles) outside Dhaka April 24, 2013. REUTERS/Andrew Biraj


​

 

[Firestorm]

Bangladesh factory building collapse kills nearly 100

By Serajul Quadir and Ruma Paul
DHAKA | Wed Apr 24, 2013 5:53pm EDT

(Reuters) - A block housing garment factories and shops collapsed in Bangladesh on Wednesday, killing nearly 100 people and injuring more than a thousand, officials said.

Firefighters and troops dug frantically through the rubble at the eight-storey Rana Plaza building in Savar, 30 km (20 miles) outside Dhaka. Television showed young women workers, some apparently semi-conscious, being pulled out.

One fireman told Reuters about 2,000 people were in the building when the upper floors slammed down onto those below.

Bangladesh's booming garments industry has been plagued by fires and other accidents for years, despite a drive to improve safety standards. In November 112 workers died in a blaze at the Tazreen factory in a nearby suburb, putting a spotlight on global retailers which source clothes from Bangladesh.

"It looks like an earthquake has struck here," said one resident as he looked on at the chaotic scene of smashed concrete and ambulances making their way through the crowds of workers and wailing relatives.

"I was at work on the third floor, and then suddenly I heard a deafening sound, but couldn't understand what was happening. I ran and was hit by something on my head," said factory worker Zohra Begum.

An official at a control room set up to provide information said 96 people were confirmed dead and more than 1,000 injured. Doctors at local hospitals said they were unable to cope with the number of victims brought in.

CRACKS IN BUILDING

Mohammad Asaduzzaman, in charge of the area's police station, said factory owners appeared to have ignored a warning not to allow their workers into the building after a crack was detected in the block on Tuesday.

Five garment factories - employing mostly women - were housed in the building, including Ether Tex Ltd., whose chairman said he was unaware of any warnings not to open the workshops.

"There was some crack at the second floor, but my factory was on the fifth floor," Muhammad Anisur Rahman told Reuters. "The owner of the building told our floor manager that it is not a problem and so you can open the factory."

He initially said that his firm had been sub-contracted to supply Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, and Europe's C&A. In a subsequent interview he said he had been referring to an order in the past, not current work.

Wal-Mart did not immediately respond to requests for comment. C&A said that, based on its best information, it had no contractual relationship with any of the production units in the building that collapsed.

The website of a company called New Wave, which had two factories in the building, listed 27 main buyers, including firms from Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Canada and the United States.

"It is dreadful that leading brands and governments continue to allow garment workers to die or suffer terrible disabling injuries in unsafe factories making clothes for Western nations' shoppers," Laia Blanch of the U.K. anti-poverty charity War on Want said in a statement.

November's factory fire raised questions about how much control Western brands have over their supply chains for clothes sourced from Bangladesh. Wages as low as $38.50 a month have helped propel the country to no. 2 in the ranks of apparel exporters.

It emerged later that a Wal-Mart supplier had subcontracted work to the Tazreen factory without authorization.

Buildings in the crowded city of Dhaka are sometimes erected without permission and many do not comply with construction regulations.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Biraj; Writing by John Chalmers; Editing by Andrew Roche)

 

[LiuKang]

Dozens rescued, hundreds missing, as Bangladesh toll tops 270

By Serajul Quadir and Ruma Paul
DHAKA | Fri Apr 26, 2013 2:16am EDT

(Reuters) - The search for survivors from Bangladesh's worst industrial accident stretched into a third day on Friday, with the death toll rising to 273 after the collapse of a building housing factories that made low-cost garments for Western brands.

Almost miraculously, 41 people trapped inside the rubble of the eight-storey building were rescued alive late on Thursday, government minister Jahangir Kabir Nanak said, about 40 hours after the disaster on the outskirts of Dhaka.

Nanak said they had been working on the fourth floor of the Rana Plaza building and had all been found trapped in one room. Few other details were available.

Around 2,000 people have been rescued over the past two days, at least half of them injured, but as many as 1,000 people remain unaccounted for.

An industry official has said 3,122 people, mainly female garment workers, were inside the building despite warnings that it was structurally unsafe.

Rescuers from Bangladesh's army, navy and air force, as well as police and fire services, pored over huge piles of rubble and twisted metal in the search for survivors, using their bare hands as well as mechanical equipment.

"We are not sure how many people are still trapped under the rubble," said Dhaka District police chief Habibur Rahman, who updated the death toll early on Friday to 273. "Priority has been given to save people who are still alive," he said.

Wednesday's disaster refocused attention on Western high-street brands that use Bangladesh as a source of low-cost goods.

North American and European chains, including British retailer Primark and Canada's Loblaw, said they were supplied by factories in the Rana Plaza building, which is in the commercial suburb of Savar, about 30 km (20 miles) from the capital.

TRAPPED WORKERS CALL FOR HELP

Savar residents and rescuers dropped bottled water and food on Thursday night to people who called out from between floors.

Relatives identified their dead among dozens of corpses wrapped in cloth on the veranda of a nearby school.

Police said the owner of the building, Mohammed Sohel Rana, a local politician from the ruling Awami League, was told of dangerous cracks on Tuesday.

While a bank in the building closed on Wednesday because of the warnings, the five clothing companies told their workers there was no danger, industry officials said. Rana is now on the run, according to police.

"We asked the garment owners to keep it closed," said Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Mohammad Atiqul Islam.

Despite the overnight rescue of 41 people, officials conceded the chances of finding more alive were growing slimmer.

"We can't be certain of getting them all out alive. We are losing a bit of hope," fire brigade rescue worker Mizanur Rahman said earlier on Thursday.

Special prayers will be offered at mosques, temples and pagodas across Bangladesh on Friday for the dead, injured and missing. The government declared a national day of mourning and flags were flown at half mast at all official buildings.

Anger over the working conditions of Bangladesh's 3.6 million garment workers, the overwhelming majority of them women, has grown steadily since the building collapse.

More than 1,000 textile workers besieged the BGMEA on Thursday, pelting it with stones and clashing with riot police. The workers demanded all garment factories be shut and the owners harshly punished for accidents.

Bangladesh is the world's second-largest apparel exporter, with the bulk of exports - 60 percent - going to Europe. The United States takes 23 percent and Canada takes 5 percent.

Primark, a unit of Associated British Foods, has confirmed one of its suppliers occupied the second floor of the building. Danish retailer PWT Group, which owns the Texman brand, said it had been using a factory in the building for seven years.

Canada's Loblaw, a unit of food processing and distribution firm George Weston Ltd, said one factory made a small number items for its "Joe Fresh" label.

Primark, Loblaw and PWT operate under codes of conduct aimed at ensuring products are made in good working conditions.

Documents including order sheets and cutting plans obtained by Reuters appeared to show that other major brands such as Benetton had used suppliers in the building in the past year.

A Benetton spokesman said none of the factories were suppliers to the company. Spain's Mango said it had an unfulfilled sample order at the plaza with Phantom Apparel.

(Additional reporting by Anis Ahmed in Dhaka, John Chalmers in New Delhi, Jessica Wohl and Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Chicago, Solarina Ho in Toronto, Robert Hertz in Madrid and Mette Kronholm Fraende in Copenhagen; Writing by Paul Tait; Editing by Alex Richardson)

 

[Sakon Shima]

Dozens rescued but Bangladesh building toll soars towards 300

By Ruma Paul and Serajul Quadir
DHAKA | Fri Apr 26, 2013 4:42am EDT

(Reuters) - Rescuers pulled dozens of survivors from the rubble of Bangladesh's worst industrial accident on Friday, but the death toll rose towards 300 after the collapse of a building housing factories that made low-cost garments for Western brands.

Almost miraculously, 62 people trapped beneath the rubble since the eight-storey building collapsed on the outskirts of the capital, Dhaka, on Wednesday were rescued alive overnight, police and government officials said.

However, there were fears between 300 and 400 people were still inside. "Some people are still alive under the rubble and we are hoping to rescue them," deputy fire services director Mizanur Rahman said.

Junior local government minister Jahangir Kabir Nanak said the death toll had reached 292 and H. T. Imam, an adviser to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said it could top 350.

Anger over the working conditions of Bangladesh's 3.6 million garment workers, the overwhelming majority of them women, has grown steadily since the disaster, with thousands taking to the streets to protest on Friday.

Nanak said 41 people were pulled alive from one room on the fourth floor overnight, almost 40 hours after the Rana Plaza building collapsed with more than 3,000 people inside.

Around 2,300 people have been rescued so far, at least half of them injured, from the remains of the building in the commercial suburb of Savar, about 30 km (20 miles) from Dhaka.

An industry official has said 3,122 people, mainly female garment workers, had been inside the building despite warnings that it was structurally unsafe.

Bangladesh is the second-largest exporter of garments in the world but many factories remained closed for a second day on Friday, with angry garment workers protesting against poor conditions and demanding the owners of the building and the factories it housed face harsh punishment.

Police and witnesses said protesters set fire to a number of vehicles and damaged other garment factories.

Dhaka District police chief Habibur Rahman identified the owner of the Rana Plaza building as Mohammed Sohel Rana, a leader of the ruling Awami League's youth front.

Imam, the prime minister's adviser, said Rana had "vanished into thin air".

"People are asking for his head, which is quite natural. This time we are not going to spare anybody," Imam said.

STRING OF FATAL INCIDENTS

Wednesday's building collapse was the third major industrial incident in five months in Bangladesh. In November, a fire at the Tazreen Fashion factory on the outskirts of Dhaka killed 112 people.

Such incidents have raised serious questions about worker safety and low wages in Bangladesh and could taint the poor South Asian country's reputation as a producer of low-cost products and services.

North American and European chains, including British retailer Primark and Canada's Loblaw, said they were supplied by factories in the Rana Plaza building.

Mohammad Atiqul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said the proprietors of the five factories inside the building had ignored the association's warning not to open on Wednesday after cracks had been seen in the building the day before.

"We asked not to open the factories and told them we will send our engineer, and until you get the green signal don't open the factories," Islam told Reuters.

"But unfortunately they violated our instructions," he said. A bank in the building did close on Wednesday after the warning.

PRAYERS, MOURNING

Savar residents and rescuers dropped bottled water and food on Thursday night to people who called out from between floors. Nearby, relatives identified their dead among dozens of corpses wrapped in cloth on the veranda of a school.

Special prayers were offered for the dead, injured and missing at mosques, temples and pagodas across Bangladesh on Friday.

Ten labour groups called for a strike on Sunday by workers at garment factories across the country.

Sixty percent of Bangladesh's garment exports go to Europe. The United States takes 23 percent and Canada takes 5 percent.

Primark, a unit of Associated British Foods, has confirmed one of its suppliers occupied the second floor of the building. Danish retailer PWT Group, which owns the Texman brand, said it had been using a factory there for seven years.

Canada's Loblaw, a unit of food processing and distribution firm George Weston Ltd, said one factory made a small number items for its "Joe Fresh" label.

Primark, Loblaw and PWT operate under codes of conduct aimed at ensuring products are made in good working conditions.

Documents including order sheets and cutting plans obtained by Reuters appeared to show that other major brands such as Benetton had used suppliers in the building in the past year.

A Benetton spokesman said none of the factories were suppliers to the company. Spain's Mango said it had an unfulfilled sample order at the plaza with Phantom Apparel.

(Additional reporting by Anis Ahmed in Dhaka, John Chalmers in New Delhi, Jessica Wohl and Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Chicago, Solarina Ho in Toronto, Robert Hertz in Madrid and Mette Kronholm Fraende in Copenhagen; Writing by Paul Tait; Editing by Alex Richardson)

 

[Sun Wukong]

Garment workers protest as Bangladesh toll nears 300

26APR2013

SAVAR, Bangladesh (AFP)

Garment workers who sew clothes for Western brands clashed with Bangladeshi police Friday at a mass rally over the death of nearly 300 colleagues in a collapsed building as rescuers raced against time to find survivors. Police fired tear-gas and rubber bullets at the angry crowds as the workers, some armed with bamboo sticks, blockaded roads and attacked factories in the textile hub of Gazipur outside the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka. "The situation is very volatile. Hundreds of thousands of workers have joined the protests," M. Asaduzzaman of Gazipur police control room told AFP.

Bangladeshi firefighters cut a hole through concrete during rescue operations after a garment factory building collapsed in Savar, on April 25, 2013. Garment workers who sew clothes for Western brands clashed with Bangladeshi police Friday at a mass rally over the death of nearly 300 colleagues in a collapsed building as rescuers raced against time to find survivors.

The violent scenes came as the death toll rose to 290 at the scene of the accident in Savar town on the outskirts of Dhaka where the eight-storey Rana Plaza factory bloc imploded on Wednesday morning. The overnight rescue of 45 people provided some hope to the thousands of anguished relatives who remain huddled at the disaster site, but an intense stench of decomposition suggested many more bodies remain trapped in the rubble.

Widespread anger has been fuelled by revelations that factory bosses forced the 3,000-strong work force to return to the building on Wednesday despite cracks appearing in the building the day before.
It prompted new criticism of Western companies who were accused by activists of placing profit before safety by sourcing their products from the country despite its shocking track record of deadly disasters.

Graphic on the building collapse in Bangladesh where the death toll has reached 272, with some 1,000 people injured.

British low-cost fashion line Primark and Spanish giant Mango have acknowledged having their products made in the collapsed bloc, while a host of brands including Wal-Mart and France's Carrefour are investigating. Italy's Benetton placed large orders with one of the suppliers, documents found by activists appear to show, but the group has denied having links to the building. The United States said it could not confirm whether any US companies were sourcing garments from the complex, as protestors in San Francisco targeted the headquarters of Gap with banners reading "No More Death Traps".

Bodies of garment factory workers are seen amid rubble after an eight-storey building collapsed in Savar, on the outskirts of Dhaka, on April 25, 2013.

"But it does underscore that there's a need for the government, owners, buyers and labour to find ways of improving working conditions in Bangladesh," deputy State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters. At the disaster scene, exhausted teams of soldiers, firemen and volunteers continued to work through the mountain of mangled concrete and steel for a third day after staying on the job for a second straight night. Amid frustration about the slow pace of the efforts, thousands of anxious relatives burst onto the disaster site, prompting police to fire tear gas to disperse the crowd.

Protestors march around the Gap Inc. headquarters on April 25, 2013 in San Francisco, California. The protesters were demanding the clothing giant improve working conditions in their manufacturing facilities in Bangladesh.

In the humid conditions, bodies trapped in the rubble were beginning to decay. "The odour is so foul, sometimes you feel like vomiting. It's difficult to work here 20 minutes at a stretch," said Mohammad Tareq, a garment worker who is one of hundreds of volunteers.

While climbing on the upper reaches of the vast pile, Tareq said that one woman called Nasima had begged to be rescued from beneath the rubble and that she was with 15-20 other people.
"We've passed water and fruit juice to them. We hope they will be rescued in the next hours," Tareq told AFP.

National fire service chief Ahmed Ali told AFP that the rescuers were now "racing against time" to find survivors. Police meanwhile made a series of raids to hunt down the factory and building owners after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina vowed to track them down and bring them to justice.

"We're working to arrest them," Mukherjee told AFP.

Employees told how they were ordered to return to their production lines, where they earn as little as 37 dollars a month for long shifts six days a week, despite a police order closing the building.

Last November a blaze at a factory making products for Wal-Mart and other Western labels left 111 people dead, with survivors describing how fire exits were kept locked by site managers.

 

[Sun Wukong]

Bangladesh police teargas building collapse protesters

26APR2013

DHAKA (AFP)

Bangladeshi police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at hundreds of thousands of garment workers Friday as they protested the deaths of some 300 workers in the latest tragedy to hit the sector.
"The situation is very volatile. Hundreds of thousands of workers have joined the protests. We fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse them," M. Asaduzzaman, an officer in the police control room, told AFP.