2,000 people rescued after launches get stuck in shoal
Two launches of Patuakhali-Dhaka route were rescued on Friday night, five hours after they got stuck on a shoal in the Karkhana river under Bakerganj upazila in Barishal, causing immense sufferings to around 2,000 passengers on board.
The four-storey Dhaka-bound MV Sundarban-9 and MV Jamal Khan-5 started from Patuakhali Launch Ghat at 6:00pm on Friday, and were stuck after one hour, in a shoal in the Karkhana in Bakerganj upazila of Barishal up to 11:45pm, said Younus Hossain, launch supervisor of Sundarban-9.
MV Jamal Khan-5 had some 900 passengers and MV Sundarban-9 took over a thousand passengers, said Ajmol Huda Mithu, Deputy Director of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC).
BIWTC officials said the vessels got stuck as they failed to follow route safety markings in foggy weather.
“The launch was plying slowly in a foggy weather, and got stuck in a shoal,” said Rahman Rintu, owner of one of the launches, and vice president of Launch Owners' Association.
Younus Hossain said navigation has been problematic on the route, causing the launch to get stuck.
In winter season, many southern rivers face navigability issues, and water transports getting stuck in shallow water is not uncommon.
Comments