<i>BIWTC ship Masud adrift on Meghna again after repair</i>

BIWTC passenger ship MV Masud drifting on the Meghna, about 10 kilometers off Chandpur town.Photo: Focus Bangla

Khulna bound BIWTC streamer PS Masud from Dhaka is stranded on turbulent Meghna waters at Katakhali, about 10 kilometres south of Chandpur town following a mechanical breakdown, BIWTC Manager at Chandpur Mohammad Zahir told this correspondent at about 8 last night.
All about 500 passengers on board were rescued. Some of them were brought back to Chandpur and the rest sent to Khulna in other vessels boats, he said.
A BIWTC rescue boat-Tugboat 395-that started from Narayanganj to salvage the vessel also went out of order and is now afloat at Baharia near Chandpur, he said.
Another rescue boatTugboat 390sailed from Barisal and may reach stranded PS Masud by midnight (Saturday), he said. The two tugboats will try to tug the vessel towards Chandpur, the BIWTC manager said.
PS Masud went out of order at the confluence at Meghna and Dakatia rivers near Chandpur at around 12:30 am Friday, according to passenger and IWTC staff.
While trying to repair the steamer near the confluence of two rivers, where there is violent current and whirlpool, four mechanic of the steamer fell into Meghna at dead of night.
Three of them were rescued by fishermen at dawn yesterday, about 8 kilometres from the steamer, but another mechanic --Amir Hossain - is still missing, said Manager Mohammad Zahir. A general diary was filed with police here yesterday in this regard, he said.
Some rescued passengers told this correspondent that till dawn yesterday, surging current drifted the steamer near Katakhali Bazar, 10 kilometres south.
They sent messages to police superintendent Obaidur Rahman for rescue.
MV Al-Borak was sent to the spot. Meanwhile, Dhaka bound rocket steamer PS Turn from Barisal reached stranded PS Masud and took all the passengers to Chandpur at 6 am yesterday.
Another steamer, Shela, arrived Chandpur terminal at around 8 am yesterday and took some of the passengers to their destinations in southern districts.
It was gathered from IWTC sources that that PS Masud was on its first voyage after a major overhauling done at a cost of over Tk 4 crore.