Body found in Chandpur ‘linked’ to Munshiganj capsize: Police
Body found in Chandpur ‘linked’ to Munshiganj capsize: Police
Sunken launch yet to be located; 127 passengers missing
Police have said body of a woman found floating in the Meghna river in Chandpur this morning could be of one of the missing victims of yesterday's launch capsize in Munshiganj.
Bodies of a woman and a man, aged about 25 and 30 respectively, were recovered from the Meghna river in Haimchar upazila of Chandpur today, reports our Chandpur correspondent quoting Md Moniruzzaman, officer-in-charge of Haimchar Police Station.
"We suspect that the woman whose body was recovered in the Meghna might be a victim of Munshiganj launch capsize," the OC said.
As the other body has already started to decompose, police suspected that the victim died two to three days back, they added.
Double-decker Pinak-6 sank in Padma river in Lauhajang upazila of Munshiganj with around 200 people on its way to Mawa Ghat from Kawrakandi terminal yesterday.
A day into the capsize, rescuers are yet to locate the sunken water vessel, reports our Munshiganj correspondent.
Soon after the incident, locals rescued two female passengers from the river but they died later.
Meanwhile, the information centre set up by the district administration at Mawa Ghat recorded missing reports of 127 people till 3:30pm when the report was filed.
A water vessel "Jarip-10" having SONAR (sound, operation, navigation and ranging) technology started from Chittagong around 11:00am as it has the capacity of locating a vessel under water, Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan told our correspondent at Mawa Ghat.
“But the 14-metre vessel was facing difficulties reaching the spot as the sea was too rough,” said Member (Harbour and Marine) of Chittagong Port Authority Commodore M Shahjahan.
The vessel could cross the outer anchorage of the port around 3:00pm, he added.
Meanwhile, relatives of missing victims today blocked a road in front of Padma Rest House near the Mawa ghat in Lauhajang for an hour since 8:30am protesting what they said slow progress in the salvage operation.
The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority, police, coast guards, fire service and Munshiganj administration are continuing the salvage operation today.
Meanwhile, rescue vessel “Nirvik” joined Rustom this morning.
The launch sank amid high winds in the choppy waters where the depth of the river is around 90 feet.
The local administration could not confirm how many people had managed to swim ashore. But locals, who took part in the rescue operation, said 50 to 60 passengers had made it to the shore. Most of them were returning to Dhaka after celebrating Eid-ul-Fitr at their village homes.
The shipping ministry formed another seven-member committee headed by its joint secretary Nurur Rahman. The committee will submit its report in 10 working days.
The disaster struck less than two and a half months after a launch capsized in the Meghna river in Munshiganj, leaving at least 55 people dead.