Fire scare leaves 40 injured

Workers in garment factory panic on a false fire alarm, leaving atleast 40 injured during evacuation

At least 40 workers were injured during hurried evacuation over a false fire alarm at a Chittagong readymade garments factory on Saturday, officials said.

The incident took place at the Pacific Jeans 2000 Limited factory in the Chittagong Export Processing Zone in the morning, a fire official said.

"A florescent light suddenly burst on the sixth floor of the seven storied factory. The noise from the burst caused panic as workers suspected outbreak of fire," EPZ fire station officer Mohammad Shahidullah told bdnews24.com.

He said the workers were injured when they tried to rush out of the factory building suspecting fire. The injured received medical attention at a local hospital.

Fires, fairly common in Bangladesh garment factories, are usually blamed on lax safety measures, miserable working environment and poor electrical connections. In November, 111 workers lost their lives in the worst ever case of factory fire in Dhaka's Ashulia locality.

Bangladesh is the world's second largest exporter of readymade garments after China and that contributes up to 80 percent to the country's export income.