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No fewer than 16 people have perished after a huge fire broke out at a clothing factory in Bangladesh, with authorities stating that the number of victims could increase.

Sixteen bodies have been recovered but were burned impossible to identify, the fire department said.

Grief-stricken relatives converged outside the multi-story factory in Dhaka's Mirpur area on that day in seeking their dear ones still missing.

The fire, which started at the factory around lunchtime, was extinguished after several hours. But an neighboring chemical warehouse kept burning, authorities reported.

Until 21:00 local time (15:00 GMT) that day, the fire at the chemical warehouse had not been fully extinguished, media reports reported.

Emergency responders have not determined which of the two buildings caught fire first.

Per bystanders, the chemical warehouse stored bleaching powder, plastic materials and chemical peroxide, all of which can intensify fires. Synthetic materials also emits toxic fumes when burned.

Police and military officers are still attempting to find the owners of the factory and the warehouse, emergency services head the fire service official informed journalists.

An investigation on whether the warehouse was operating legally is also in progress, he mentioned.

Tearful family members waited outside the fire-damaged buildings, many of them grasping photographs of their missing relatives.

Present at the scene is a man looking frantically for his daughter, Farzana Akhter.

"When I heard about the fire, I rushed here. But I still haven't found her... I just want my loved one back," he stated to journalists.

The catastrophic occurrence has another time underscored the safety concerns affecting Bangladesh's garment industry, which provides jobs for millions of workers and is a major provider of economic income for the South Asian economy.