A search and rescue operation has been launched in the capital after a river trawler sank in the Buriganga River on Sunday morning. The vessel, which was heading towards Cumilla, went down following a severe collision with a large passenger launch near the busy Sadarghat area.
The incident occurred at approximately 9:30 am close to the Shyambazar Ghat. According to Anwarul Islam, a warehouse inspector from the Fire Service and Civil Defence media cell, the vessel was struck by the Sundarban-12 launch, a passenger ship travelling to the capital.
Emergency services reacted swiftly to the collision, and a specialised rescue team from the Sadarghat River Fire Station arrived at the scene by 9:50 am. Initial reports indicate that out of the ten individuals on board the newly built trawler, eight managed to swim to safety or were pulled from the water by nearby boats.
However, two passengers could not be located after the vessel went under, and they remain missing. Divers have successfully established the exact location of the sunken hull on the riverbed and are focusing their efforts on finding the unaccounted-for individuals.
Local river police and emergency service workers are monitoring the area, while the search operation continues to move forward despite the heavy river traffic. An official inquiry is expected to establish the exact sequence of events that led to the collision in the mid-river channel.
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