At least 70 killed in Bangladesh building fire

A fast-moving fire killed at least 70 when it swept through a historic district of Bangladesh's capital Dhaka.

The blaze broke out on Wednesday night in a residential building that had flammable chemicals stored on one floor. It then quickly spread to nearby buildings.

Members of a bridal party are thought to be among the victims.

Large building fires are relatively common in impoverished Bangladesh, due in part to lax regulations, and have killed hundreds of people in recent years.

The fire broke out at 23:40 local time (17:40 GMT) on Wednesday, Bangladesh police said.

The fire started in a four-story building on Wednesday night and spread to nearby buildings in the Chawkbazar area of Old Dhaka, which dates back to the Mughal period more than 300 years ago.

Julfikar Rahman, a director of the Fire Service and Civil Defence said at least 50 people had been taken to the hospital, some in critical condition.

Hundreds of people rushed to the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital to search for missing relatives, witnesses said.

About 200 firefighters fought for more than five hours to bring the blaze under control. They told reporters the building where the fire began had housed a plastics warehouse and contained flammable material.

Rahman said the cause was still under investigation.

He said firefighters had struggled to find enough water to fight the blaze and had to draw supplies from a nearby mosque.

Victims included people outside the buildings, some guests at a restaurant and members of a bridal party, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police Ibrahim Khan said.

The fire is likely to focus attention on lax enforcement of building safety regulations in Bangladesh, where accidents kill hundreds every year.

The Rana Plaza factory collapse in 2013 killed more than 1,100 workers and a fire in a garment factory in 2012 killed 112 people.