Death toll rises to 76

Relatives and friends of victim passengers of MV Koko-4 wait along the banks of the river Tentulia near Nazirpur launch terminal. Overloading by operators made this lady [inset] sacrifice much more than she had ever thought of. Photo: Courtesy

The death toll in Friday's launch capsize in the river Tentulia near Nazirpur launch terminal about 40 kilometres from Bhola district town under Lalmohon upazila, rose to 76 yesterday, official sources said.
Rescuers feared that many more victims were still trapped inside MV Koko - 4 which capsized with around 2,000 passengers on board, almost three times the capacity.
Rescue operation was suspended yesterday evening due to a lack of illumination at the accident site, and was scheduled to resume today. Seventy-two of the rescued bodies were identified and handed over to their family members while four could not be identified immediately.
The overcrowded launch was sailing to the coastal town of Bhola from the capital, with passengers most of whom were going home to celebrate the Eid-ul-Azha.
The launch left Sadarghat terminal in the capital at 11:00am on Friday and its hull was damaged severely when the vessel was around 50 feet away from Nazirpur launch terminal around 11:30 at night.
Rescuers suspect that the vessel might have hit a submerged shoal, but it has not been confirmed yet.
Dozens of passengers were injured as they tried to jump off the capsizing launch.
"It was about 11:25 at night. I felt a heavy jerk. The launch tilted to one side. Then I witnessed the horror, the rear of the launch went under water," said Abdur Rahim a surviving passenger.
Helal Uddin, another passenger who swam to safety after the accident, said about 70 to 80 passengers jumped into the river as the launch began to sink.
"My 16-year-old son is dead. He was a fruit seller on his way back from buying fruit in Dhaka," said his mother Rahima Khatun. Her elder son and husband had also died recently, she added in tears.
DEATH COUNT YET NOT CONCLUSIVE
There has been no official word yet on how many passengers were on board. But district administration sources said the launch was licensed to carry 600 passengers during the day and 446 at night.
Officials near the spot of the capsizal said most of the passengers were either rescued or swam ashore.
Deputy Commissioner of Bhola Mesbahul Islam told The Daily Star, "Now I can't give you the exact number of the people who were on board. But I think the launch was carrying passengers three times higher than its capacity."
RESCUE OPERATION
Police, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), and Fire Brigade and Civil Defence teams are carrying out the search and rescue operation.
Divers were scanning the riverbank, but locals said the search could not get off to a full start because of rushing currents and swirling waters.
A bigger salvage rescue vessel of BIWTA, tug vessel Hamza took more than 24 hours to arrive at the scene at 11:00am on Sunday, setting off from bordering district Barisal the previous morning.
Officials said the river is low at this time of year, which caused poor navigability. Salvage vessel MV Hamza, erected the capsized launch allowing rescue workers to better reach the hull. Some smaller boats are also in the operation.
RELATIVES' AGONY
Thousands of people watched the salvage operation as divers brought out bodies one after another from the sunken vessel.
"It's like torture standing here watching each body being brought out, wondering if it's them," said Kabir whose brother and nephew were on the launch.
"I just want his body," said another woman, Halima, wailing loudly clutching two baby sons. "Oh Allah, help us find my husband."
A distraught man, Mahfuz, surrounded by wailing relatives, said his cousin Sabuj was among the rescued bodies. "We just thank God that his body has been found and we can bury him," he said.
"We've finally found our uncle," said Faruq Ahmed. "He was a crew member. We knew it was him, because he was wearing his favourite shirt."
MINISTER'S VISIT
Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan and officials of BIWTA visited the spot Saturday afternoon.
"Before retrieving all the bodies, we can't say anything about the number of dead," the minister said. "It will take two to three more days to get the accurate casualty figure," he added.
He however said the families of the dead and the injured will be compensated, but he would not say anything about the missing.
Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Abdul Karim also visited the site yesterday afternoon and assured family members of the victims all out cooperation from the government.