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Dozens missing as overcrowded Bangladeshi ferry capsizes

Sunday, 22 February 2015 9:46 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 22 February 2015 9:58 AM ]

A file photo of a capsized Bangladeshi ferry

Dozens of passengers are reported missing after a river ferry in central Bangladesh capsized and sank following a collision with a cargo vessel in Padma River, police say.

Citing survivors, local police chief Rakibuz Zaman said 70-150 people were on board the the twin-deck MV Mostofa when it capsized on Sunday.

"Some 50 people swam ashore or were rescued by other vessels," he said.

Rescue operations are reportedly underway following the incident at the Daulatdia-Paturia crossing on the river, authorities in the district of Manikganj told local media.

However, it was not immediately clear how many passengers may have survived and how many are still missing.

According to local officials, rescue teams were deployed to the site of the accident - 40 kilometers northwest of the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka - while many passing vessels were also assisting in the operation.

Inspector Zihad Mia, who is overseeing the rescue operation, said the ferry was submerged at a depth of up to 20 feet (6 meters).

“We have not recovered any dead body, and we don’t have a clear picture about how many were exactly in the ferry when it sank,” Miad said. “But I think many have survived.”

He further stated that divers would be deployed to determine the exact position of the ferry, adding, “We are trying to gather details from the survivors.”

The Padma is one of the largest rivers in Bangladesh, a nation that is crisscrossed by an estimated 130 rivers.

Meanwhile, poor safety standards and overcrowding of ferries are often cited as the major cause of many ferry disasters in the poor South Asian nation.

An overloaded ferry carrying some 200 passengers also capsized in an estuary in the south of the country earlier this month, killing at least five people including a minor.

In a similar accident in August 2014, a ferry with a capacity of 85 passengers was found transporting more than 200 when it capsized in the Padma River near the capital, leaving over 100 people dead or missing.

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