Bangladesh Disaster: More Than 600 Dead

The death toll from the collapse of a textile factory complex in Bangladesh has reached more than 620 after dozens more bodies were pulled out from the wreckage.

It has been 12 days since the disaster but bodies are still being found in the rubble of the eight-storey building, part of which was constructed illegally.

Lieutenant Imran Khan, of the army control room set up to co-ordinate the recovery operation, said a further 53 bodies had been recovered on Sunday.

The Rana Plaza building - situated in Savar, an industrial suburb of the capital Dhaka - housed five clothing factories, employing a total of 3,122 staff.

It is not known how many workers were inside the complex when it collapsed. Around 2,500 survivors have been accounted for.

Hundreds of distraught relatives gathered at the site as cranes and bulldozers cut through a mountain of concrete and mangled steel.

Officials said it was becoming more difficult to identify the dead because of the level of decomposition and missing limbs.

"We've identified only a handful of them by their mobile phones that were found in their pockets or identity cards given by the factories," said Zillur Rahman Chowdhury, deputy administrator of Dhaka district.

Preliminary findings of a government probe have blamed vibrations from four giant generators on the compound's upper floors for triggering the collapse.

Protests have taken place about the poor working conditions of workers

The building's architect, Masood Reza, has said he designed the structure to house a shopping mall and offices, not factories.

Several people have been arrested over the disaster, including the building's owner Mohammed Sohel Rana, who was captured near the border with India as he tried to flee the country.

He allegedly had the approval to construct five floors but added three more illegally.

He is expected to be charged with negligence, illegal construction and forcing employees to work - which carry a maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment.

A murder complaint has been brought against him by the wife of one of the workers.

Bangladesh is the world's second-largest clothing exporter behind China. The industry accounts for 80% of the country's exports and more than 40% of its industrial workforce.

The tragedy has sparked protests about the poor working conditions of workers who toil for as little as £25 a month to produce clothing for top international brands.

The European Commissioner for Trade, Karel de Gucht, has said if conditions do not improve for workers in Bangladesh, the EU could impose punitive measures.

He told Sky News' Murnaghan programme: "We are going to make it very clear to the Bangladeshi government that they have to take immediate action, with a precise timeline ... because what is happening is not acceptable"

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