Scores killed as fire engulfs factory near Bangladesh capital

Firefighters work to douse a fire inside a food and beverage factory in Rupganj, outside Dhaka, Bangladesh (Mahmud Hossain Opu/AP)

A fire engulfed a food and beverage factory outside Bangladesh’s capital, killing at least 52 people, many of whom were trapped inside by an illegally locked door, fire officials said.

The blaze began on Thursday night at the five-story Hashem Foods Ltd factory, in Rupganj, just outside Dhaka, sending huge clouds of black smoke billowing into the sky.