Bangladesh factory blaze kills 9, injures 100

At least nine people including seven women have died after a blaze tore through a garment factory outside the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, police said. The fire broke out at the ground-floor warehouse of the multi-storey Tazreen Fashions factory 30 kilometres (18 miles) north of Dhaka on Saturday night, trapping hundreds of workers on the upper upper floors, police said. "So far we've nine dead including seven women," police inspector Mostofa Kamal told AFP, adding about 100 workers were also injured, seven of whom were shifted to a top clinic in Dhaka including one in critical condition. Kamal said many workers jumped from the factory's upper floors to escape the raging fire before fire-fighters arrived to put the blaze out after more than four hours. It was not immediately known what caused the blaze but fires due to short circuits and shoddy electrical wiring are common in Bangladeshi garment plants, which use cheap labour to produce clothes that are shipped to Western countries. Fire Brigade Director General Brigadier General Abu Nayeem Mohammad Shahidullah told reporters that they suspected the fire originated from an electrical short-circuit. "We can say it for sure after investigation." He said a lack of water in the area delayed efforts to control the fire. Fire trucks in Bangladesh are not always equipped with enough water to put out blazes. In December 2010, at least 29 workers were killed, most jumping to their death from factory rooftop, after a fire gutted a Hameem Group factory, which was making apparel for Western retailers like Gap and JC Penney.