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1st LD Writethru: Death toll in Bangladesh ferry accident rises to 65

Xinhua, February 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

Death toll in Bangladesh's ferry accident in Bangladesh's western Manikganj district on Sunday rose to 65 as rescuers found 24 more bodies inside the hull of the ferry early Monday, a police officer said.

Abul Muktadir, a police officer supervising the rescue operation, told Xinhua Monday morning that the ill-fated ferry, ML Mostafa, was dragged to shore and rescuers found 24 more bodies inside the ferry. Forty-one bodies were recovered late Sunday night.

The ferry, carrying around 150 people, sank after being hit in the middle of its body by a cargo ship in the Padma river on Sunday noon. Some of the passengers were able to swim to safety.

The ferry hasn't been fully lifted yet, Muktadir said, while rescuers continued their search in the river as relatives of those on board said some people were still missing.

So far 33 bodies have been handed over to their relatives, he said, adding that 20,000 taka (257.2 U.S. dollars) have been given to families of each dead person as grant for burial.

Three employees of the cargo ship have been arrested by the police, according to the police officer.

Bangladeshi President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Bangladesh Nationalist Party Chairperson Khaleda Zia have expressed their shock at the loss of lives and condoled families of the victims.

Ferry services in Bangladesh do not maintain lists of passengers and no one is able to tell exactly how many passengers a ferry carries.

Ferry and boat accidents are common in Bangladesh, which is crisscrossed by about 250 rivers. Ferry is still a key means of transport in the country. Most of the ferries are often overcrowded.

In another ferry accident that also happened in the Padma river four months ago, a ferry carrying over 200 passengers sank after being caught by a storm. About 50 bodies were recovered but the ferry could not be lifted due to rough weather. The authorities later abandoned the rescue operation.

In yet another accident, at least 138 bodies were recovered after a ferry capsized in Munshiganj district in March 2012. Endi