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Bangladesh boat capsize death toll climbs to 33; several reportedly missing

The police said that a novice was allegedly at the helm of Moyur-2 when it slammed into the boat causing it to capsize.

Bangladesh boat capsize death toll climbs to 33; several reportedly missing

Representational image (Photo: IStock)

The death toll from a boat capsize in Bangladesh’s Buriganga river has climbed to 33 after another body was recovered on Tuesday, according to the authorities

Many other passengers were feared missing, it added.

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The body was recovered when the sunken vessel was being pulled out of water, The Daily Star newspaper quoted Anisur Rahman, duty officer of Fire Service and Civil Defence, as saying.

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The boat, Morning Bird, was heading toward Sadarghat from Munshiganj when it collided with the Moyuri-2 vessel from Chandpur, said BIWTA transport inspector Md Selim.

It was reportedly carrying over 100 passengers, according to local police.

The incident took place near Dhaka’s Shyambazar in the early hours of Monday”, the Fire Service Control Room Officer Rozina Islam said.

The police said that a novice was allegedly at the helm of Moyur-2 when it slammed into the boat causing it to capsize.

Seven people have sued on charge of negligence.

Boat accidents occur frequently in Bangladesh, where hundreds of waterways, including the Ganges Delta rivers Brahmaputra, Padma and Meghna, are commonly used for transport.

Last month, at least four labourers were dead and several reportedly missing after a boat capsized in the river of Jamuna in Bangladesh’s Sirajganj district.

In February this year, at least 15 people were killed after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees capsized in the Bay of Bengal.

The boat capsized in the wetland, known as Kaliakutha haor. It carried onboard dozens of wedding party guests and overturned under inclement weather.

In 2017, four Rohingya migrants were killed after a boat carrying them capsized off the coast of Bangladesh close to its border with Myanmar.

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