Dhaka, Oct 15 (PTI) Plumes of smoke continued to billow from a charred chemical warehouse here on Wednesday, preventing firefighters from entering the building even 24 hours after a massive fire tore through the facility and an adjacent garments factory, killing at least 16 people in the Bangladeshi capital, officials said.

"Our expert team, wearing chemical suits, opened the main gate of the chemical warehouse this morning, but could not enter. There is a large amount of thick white smoke inside, which is highly toxic,” Fire Service Assistant Director Kazi Nazmuzzaman told reporters at the site in Mirpur.

He said it might “take a long time to bring the situation under control" at the chemical depot, which authorities said had been operating without mandatory permission.

Fire officials

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