Lighter vessel capsizes in Bay

A lighter vessel carrying 2,000 tonnes of raw sugar capsized in the Bay of Bengal near Bhashanchar yesterday morning.

All 12 crewmembers of the vessel, MV City-14, were rescued by the crew of another vessel, passing through the area.

The vessel owned by City Group was heading towards Narayanganj after loading the imported sugar from a mother vessel at the outer anchorage of Chattogram port, said Mohammad Salim, deputy director of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA).

The vessel sank at the entry point of Hatiya channel near Bhashanchar around 5:30am as water entered the engine room due to the heavy current in the Bay, the BIWTA official said.

The master of the vessel somehow managed to drive it near the coast of Thengarchar so that there is no disruption in vessel movement in the Hatiya channel in the Bay, said the deputy director.