NEW DELHI, May 9 (RIA Novosti) – Some 953 people are now thought to have died in the factory collapse in Bangladesh, sources in the military told local media on Thursday.
Previous reports put the number of dead at 912.
The Rana Plaza building in Savar, an industrial suburb of Dhaka, collapsed on April 24. Over 3,000 people are thought to have been working in the building at the time.
On Wednesday, the authorities in Bangladesh ordered 18 textile factories to close over health and safety concerns, and a commission to check the 4,500 factories in the region was set up earlier in the week.
Preliminary information from the government inquiry indicates that vibrations from four powerful generators, installed in the building in breach of regulations, caused the tragedy. The building’s architect has told the media that it was designed to house offices, not garment factories.
Investigators have confirmed that the building was intended for “commercial use.”
Over 2,400 of those working in the factory at the time of its collapse were rescued, local officials have told international media.
Survivors have told the media that they had noticed worrying cracks in the building a day before the incident, but that their management convinced them to return to work.
The building owner is one of those who have been arrested over the tragedy.
Updates death toll in lead.
