Death toll of Bangladesh building collapse tops 700
The disaster is the worst ever in the garment sector, surpassing New York's Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire
BY JULHAS ALAM
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) Hundreds of survivors of last months collapse of a building housing garment factories in Bangladesh protested for compensation Tuesday, as the death toll from the countrys worst-ever industrial disaster passed 700.
The police control room overseeing the recovery operation said the death toll stood at 705 on Tuesday afternoon as workers pulled more bodies out of the wreckage of the eight-story building that was packed with workers at five garment factories when it collapsed on April 24. The factories were making clothing bound for major retailers around the world.
The disaster is the worst ever in the garment sector, surpassing the 1911 garment disaster in New Yorks Triangle Shirtwaist factory, which killed 146 workers, and more recent tragedies such as a 2012 fire that killed about 260 people in Pakistan and one in Bangladesh that killed 112, also in 2012. It is also one of the deadliest industrial accidents ever.
No one knows what the final toll will be, as the exact number of people inside Rana Plaza at the time of the collapse was unknown. More than 2,500 people were rescued alive.
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http://www.salon.com/2013/05/07/death_toll_of_bangladesh_building_collapse_tops_700_ap/