150 missing after ferry sinks in Bangladesh
2012-03-13 07:45
Dhaka - At least 150 people were missing
after a ferry carrying 200 passengers sank in Bangladesh on Tuesday morning,
police said, adding that about 35 survivors had been found.
The double-decker Shariatpur 1 ferry was hit
by another vessel in the middle of the Meghna river just southeast of the
capital Dhaka, local police chief Shahidul Islam told AFP.
"About 35 passengers were rescued by
another ferry. But more than 150 passengers remain unaccounted for," Islam
said, adding a rescue boat was at the scene trying to locate the sunken vessel.
Coastguards, fire brigade and police rescue
workers also rushed to the site after the accident at 02:30 (20:30 GMT on Monday).
One rescued passenger, named as Dulal, told
local media that eight of his relatives including a brother-in-law and his
brother-in-law's wife were missing.
He said most people were asleep when the
accident took place.
Boats are the main form of travel in
Bangladesh's remote rural areas and accidents are common due to lax safety
standards and overloading.
In April last year 32 people were killed
after a passenger vessel sank in the Meghna river after colliding with a cargo
ship.
