Ferry disaster toll 'over 500'

2003-07-11 07:45

Parveen Ahmed

Chandpur - Bloated and decomposing bodies are washing ashore as rescue workers give up hope for more than 500 people missing after a ferry disaster in southern Bangladesh.

The MV Nasreen went down on Tuesday night with about 750 people on board, and authorities said only 220 survived. About 530 people are feared dead.

The ferry had a capacity of 350.

Rescuers plucked three more bodies from Meghna River on Friday, bringing to 16 the number recovered so far.

Most of the bodies have been found a few kilometres downstream of the disaster.

Rescue workers said they now have little hope of finding survivors.

The ferry sank at the meeting point of three flood-swollen rivers - the Padma, Meghna and Dakatia - in Chandpur, southeast of the capital, Dhaka.

Many passengers were believed to have been sleeping and trapped inside the ferry when it sank.

Three salvage ships on Friday resumed their search for the ferry, thought to be at a depth of 60m. The search had to be postponed on Thursday because of heavy rain.

Flags of mourning being flown

"It may still take a day or two to find the ship," said shipping minister Akbar Hossain. "We are doing our best to salvage it."

Hundreds of relatives lined the shore, desperate for any word of their loved ones. Others raised black flags of mourning over their homes.

"Help me to find my son. He wanted to show me his new school uniform," cried 40-year-old Rizia Begum, whose 13-year-old son, Iqbal Hossain, was missing.

Hossain had been travelling home on the ferry after visiting a relative in Dhaka, where he had bought the uniform.

Frequent maritime accidents

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has expressed shock at the accident and ordered an investigation.

Frequent maritime accidents - often blamed on overloading, faulty construction and disregard for safety measures - claim hundreds of lives every year in this delta nation of 130 million people.

The Nasreen was loaded with cargo including rice, iron rods and vegetables, and may have had even more than the 750 passengers estimated by officials to have been on board.

Khairul Islam, a mobile phone engineer and one of the survivors, said the ferry was carrying more than 1 000 people.

- AP