RESCUERS have found 40 people alive in the twisted remains of the Dhaka garment factory building which collapsed on Wednesday.
Bangladeshi television showed images of survivors being pulled from the debris - more than 36 hours after they were buried under masses of concrete and steel.
So far more than 220 people have been killed in the disaster.
The group was found after they were heard screaming, a rescue official told the BBC.
An army spokesman said: "We've found 40 people alive in a room. They are being rescued."
Onlookers greeted news of the miracle rescue with cries of joy - though fears remain about many workers who are still unaccounted for.
Devastation ... at least 220 feared dead in Bangladesh building collapse
The search for survivors resumed this morning after the building, in the Savar area of the city, fell down.
Meanwhile, the factory's owners are said to have gone into hiding after Dhaka police filed a case of causing unlawful death against them.
More than a thousand people were hurt when the eight-storey building crumbled to the ground.
It's feared the death toll will rise because 2,000 people were inside the Ranza Plaza building on the outskirts of the capital Dhaka at the time.
Children could be among them because the firm runs creches for women workers on three of the floors.
Local hospitals are said to have been overwhelmed by the arrival of over 1,000 injured people.
Some of the garments made at the factory are sold in budget clothes favourite Primark's stores across the UK.
The factory also supplied Matalan up until February.
Terrifying ... woman is plucked from the rubble
Firemen and soldiers were today continuing to scour the rubble for survivors - watched by tens of thousands of weeping family members.
Rescuers could still hear cries for help from workers trapped inside, as witnesses said hundreds more may be buried.
A day of mourning has been declared today by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Building collapses are common in Bangladesh because many are built flouting regulations.
SCORES killed and hundreds injured in rubble of eight-storey block housing factories and shopping centre
Cracks on the building were first spotted on Tuesday and cops ordered for it to be evacuated.
But employees turned up work on Wednesday before being engulfed by tumbling masonry.
Survivor Shaheena Akhter, 23, said: "Some of us did not want to work fearing something might happen.
"But the garment factory people told us that we had to join our work otherwise we will lose our jobs."
Devastation ... rescuers clamber over buidling's remains
A Primark spokesman said: "The company is shocked and deeply saddened by this appalling incident at Savar, near Dhaka, and expresses its condolences to all of those involved.
"Primark confirms that one of its suppliers occupied the second floor of the eight storey building, which housed several suppliers to the garment industry making clothing for a number of brands."
He added: "Primark has been engaged for several years with NGOs and other retailers to review the Bangladeshi industry's approach to factory standards. Primark will push for this review to also include building integrity.
Agony ... woman grimaces as she is helped away
"Meanwhile Primark's ethical trade team is at this moment working to collect information, assess which communities the workers come from, and to provide support where possible."
A spokesman for Matalan said one of the companies based there used to supply them.
He said: "We can confirm that New Wave has been a supplier to Matalan although we don't have any current production with them.
Shocking ... scene of collapse
"We are deeply saddened by the news and we have been trying to get in touch with our contacts since we heard to check if we are able to assist."
A blaze at a garment factory in another Dhaka suburb killed some 110 people last November - and sparked a massive public outcry over lax safety standards.
It led many Western clothing firms whose garments are made in Bangladesh to urge local factory owners to improve working conditions.
At least 25 people lost their lives in 2010 when a four-storey building in the city fell down, with many more left injured.
Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4903275/Forty-people-found-alive-in-collapsed-Dhaka-factory-rubble.html#ixzz2RUv4Pf1T
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