He said a probe had been ordered. Witnesses told newspapers workers were trapped because the only exit door on the ground floor was locked for security reasons and had to be broken open by firefighters. The factory owner, Sagar Chowdhury, disputed those accounts. He said the fire was caused by a short circuit on the fourth floor. Bangladesh has nearly 2,000 garment factories that employ at least 1.5 million workers, most of them young women.
Children also work in the factories.