Meghna Lauch Tragedy – Death toll rise 33

The launch sank around 1:30am on Thursday (April 21, 2011) after colliding with a stone-laden trawler that had already tipped over in the Meghna at Char Kakoria under Sarail upazila of Brahmanbaria. The death toll rise 33.

Salvage vessel MV Rustom reached the spot at Thursday night and continued rescue operation till 8:00 am on April 22, 2011. Rescuers found three bodies floating in the river. Two other bodies were recovered from inside the sunken vessel after dragging it to the shore. The authorities abandoned the salvage operation at 1:00 pm on April 22, as there was nobody inside the vessel, the UNO said.

BIWTA rescue vessel Rustom pulls out MV Bipasha from under the Meghna at Sarail upazila of Brahmanbaria. Photo: The daily star.
BIWTA rescue vessel Rustom pulls out MV Bipasha from under the Meghna at Sarail upazila of Brahmanbaria. Photo: The daily star.

The rescuers also salvaged answer scripts of HSC exam, cash money and other valuables from the launch, Sarail thana OC Md Jahirul Islam said.

Out of 33 bodies, 8 were children and14 were women. 30 bodies were handed over to their relatives while three unclaimed bodies–a man aged around 50, a 35-year-old woman, and a 12-year-old boy–were buried at Rajpur graveyard. Meanwhile, some people, who were passing tense hours on the bank of the river, said they were yet to find their missing family members numbering 10 to 12. UNO Helal Uddin said some of the passengers may be missing due to heavy current in the river.

Some passengers, who have survived the near death situation, alleged that insufficient light and overloading of passengers were the main causes of the accident. A three-member probe committee headed by Hasan Mahmud Tareque, chief engineer of the marine department of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority, has started investigating the incident.

Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan along with Brahmanbaria Deputy Commissioner (DC) Md Abdul Manna visited the spot and pledged to provide financial assistances to the family members of the dead. Tk. 30,000 will be provided for a victim’s family and Tk.45,000 for the family with more than one victim. Besides, more than Tk.30,000 was handed over to the victims’ families from the local fund of DC, district rehabilitation office sources said.

Another seven-member probe committee headed by Brahmanbaria DC was formed to find out the cause of the launch mishap.

Prepared By: Sumaya Noor

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