UPDATE – Fire kills at least 70 in Bangladeshi capital

REVISES HEADLINE, LEDE TO REFLECT LATEST DEATH TOLL, ADDS DETAILS</p> <p> <p>By Ahmet Salih Alacaci and Md. Kamruzzaman</p> <p> <p>ANKARA/DHAKA (AA) – At least 70 people were killed Wednesday when a massive fire spread through several apartment buildings in Bangladesh’s capital.</p> <p> <p>Fire Service and Civil Defense Director Maj. AKM Shakil Nawaz confirmed to Anadolu Agency early Thursday that 70 people have died in the blaze in the old part of Dhaka.</p> <p> <p>&quot;We have found huge amounts of plastic materials stored in a building that is always risky to fire. But without completing an investigation, we cannot assure anything,&quot; said Nawaz.</p> <p> <p>He said they had found evidence of a gas cylinder explosion, adding an investigative body has been formed to probe the incident.</p> <p> <p>The fire broke out in a multistory building in Dhaka where chemical substances were kept in &quot;unsafe conditions&quot;, though officials could not confirm how it started, the Dhaka Tribune reported earlier.</p> <p> <p>While local fire brigades eventually brought the fire under control, officials said they expect the number of casualties to rise, the newspaper said, adding the dead included women and children.</p> <p> <p>Some 50 people were admitted to medical facilities, with 16 being treated for burn injuries and three in critical condition, it said.