Report: 72 dead in Philippines slipper factory fire

London – At least 72 have been reported dead in a fire that broke out at Kentex Manufacturing Corp rubber slipper factory on the outskirts of Manila, the Philippines.

London-based newspaper The Guardian said the police continued to retrieve charred bodies from the gutted building while dozens more remained missing and feared dead.

The flames were so intense that even jewellery the victims wore that might have helped with their identification had melted in the heat or fallen off, the report said.

Iron grilles reinforced with fencing wire covered windows on the second floor that “could prevent even cats from escaping”, said the Guardian report quoting families of the victims.

News reports from the Philippines suggest that the fire was ignited by sparks from welding work being done at the factory's main entrance door, triggering an explosion of the chemicals used to make the slippers.

Workers fled to the second floor where they were trapped.