Boat capsizes on river in southeastern Bangladesh, killing 5

Boat capsizes on river in southeastern Bangladesh, killing 5

2012-01-06 21:51:12 GMT+7 (ICT)

DHAKA, BANGLADESH (BNO NEWS) -- At least five people drowned and five others remain missing after a boat capsized on a river in southeastern Bangladesh on Thursday, local media reported on Friday.

The accident happened when an overloaded boat capsized on the Karnaphuli river in the Boalkhali Upazila of Chittagong District, which is located in the country's southeast. The boat was carrying between 50 and 90 people, most of them workers from the FMC Corporation Dock Yard which is currently under construction.

Boalkhali Officer-in-Charge Jahirul Haque Sabuj told the local Daily Star newspaper that five people were confirmed to have drowned, while at least five others are believed to remain missing. There was no official list of passengers, making it difficult to determine if more people could be missing.

However, Sabuj said most of the passengers are believed to have swam ashore safely. Many parts of the Karnaphuli river are very wide, as wide as 667 meters (2,188 feet) in some places, but the river is only about 20 meters (65 feet) wide where Thursday's accident happened.

Ruhul Amin, the deputy director of the Chittagong division of the Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defense Department, said rescue teams from Agrabad fire station were continuing to search for more bodies in the river. The five bodies which were recovered were identified as locals between the ages of 22 and 50.

Ferry and boat accidents happen frequently in Bangladesh, which is criss-crossed by more than 250 rivers. In April 2011, at least 33 people were killed when a ferry carrying more than 200 passengers sank on the Meghna river in eastern Bangladesh.

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