Death toll in Philippines shoe factory fire rises to 72

A fire has destroyed a shoe factory in the Philippine capital and the death toll has risen to 72 – it seems the fire started when sparks from welding work ignited flammable chemicals near the entrance of the building. This has been reported in bbc.com of 14 May 2015.
The police are investigating and have vowed to take swift action against those responsible, amid workers' claims of poor health and safety standards. The safety standards in the Philippines is lax and large fires, especially in slum areas, are quite common.

The fire had spread quickly and very few managed to escape. Many were trapped on the second floor of the building, where iron grills on the windows prevented their escape. Initial investigations reveal that the deaths might have been caused by suffocation and inhaling the thick black smoke from burning rubber and chemicals.
The factory, which is operated by Kentex Manufacturing, manufactures rubber flip flops and sandals and, at the time of the fire, from 200 to 300 people were inside the building. It is located in the rundown district of Valenzuela in the north of the capital.
The mayor of the Valenzuela district has indicated that the death toll would not increase further because the number of bodies retrieved matched with the number of people missing.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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