William Fong, U.S. CNMI Development Corp. manager, said they provided shelter, food and other necessities to the 239 workers after a fire broke out at the MGM garment factory on Wednesday morning.
Fong said the workers were not able to retrieve their belongings when the fire erupted because firefighters instructed them to vacate the place immediately.
MGM’s management will ask fire division officials if the company’s officials can visit the fire-ravaged area to see the extent of the damage, he said.
Fong said they need to evaluate the state of the equipment and other supplies of the factory.
He said they have already informed their buyers about the situation of MGM.
Although, the management has made no decision yet regarding the employment of its workforce, Fong said company “certainly we want to retain our workers.”
An MGM security guard who was at the factory when the fire broke up said the workers could have retrieved their belongings had they been allowed getting back to their barracks.
He accused firefighters of “negligence” and “incompetence.”
He said there were at least five fire trucks that responded but nobody could come close to the fire.
“The fire was not so big when they came but they allowed it to spread,” he said.
The workers, he added, sought shelter at BQF Services Corp., a sister company of MGM, and later transferred to U.S. CNMI Development Corp.
