Bangladesh building collapse: Death toll exceeds 500
Bangladeshi officials said on May 3 that the death toll from the collapse of an eight-story building near the capital Dhaka has now exceeded 500. Dozens more remain missing.
Last night, May 2nd, more than 20 additional bodies were recovered from the Rana Plaza building – which houses five garment factories employing thousands of workers – bringing the total number of deaths found to 501.
Nearly 10 days after the building collapse, many people are still missing and have not been found.
- Photo: CNN
Thus far, apart from the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York (USA) which killed nearly 3,000 people and the 1995 Sampoong department store collapse in South Korea which killed 502 people, this is the deadliest building collapse in recent years.
Officials said that since the disaster, 2,437 people have been rescued. However, no survivors have been found in the past four days. Yet many relatives are still waiting at the scene, anxiously awaiting news of their loved ones. Rescue workers say they don't know exactly how many people are missing, as the garment factory owners haven't provided them with the number of workers who came to work in the building. |
Regarding this accident, yesterday afternoon, May 2nd, police arrested another engineer who acted as an advisor to the owner of Rana Plaza building, accused of illegally adding extra floors. This brings the total number of arrests to nine, including the building owner and three engineers.
On the same day, garment factories across Bangladesh resumed operations, for the first time since the Rana Plaza building collapse. Prior to the accident, garment workers had been protesting daily, demanding harsh punishment for those responsible for ensuring factory safety.
CNN also reported on May 2nd that Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced the government was "acting swiftly" to reform the garment industry following a series of recent safety incidents.
“A committee has been established to ensure the safety of buildings and workers. This committee will present the inspection results to the cabinet committee, and together, we will do our best to improve the situation,” she said.
According to Tuoi Tre - DT
