The death toll from Sunday’s disastrous launch capsize in the Padma River in Shibalaya upazila has shot up to 70.
Deputy Commissioner of the district Rashida Ferdous said rescuers retrieved 28 bodies from the river from 4am to 10am on Monday. Besides, a six-month-old girl who was rescued from the launch on Sunday noon died at Sadar Hospital here on Monday.The victims include 28 women and 15 children, who hailed from different areas of Rajbari, Kushtia, Manikganj, Narail, Dhaka, Faridpur, Nilphamari and Gopalganj districts.
Of the bodies, 69 have been handed over to the families concerned. Each family was given Tk 20,000 for the burial of the body.
At a press briefing, Rasheda Ferdous told reporters near the capsize spot that they abandoned the rescue operation at 10am as there was ‘no body inside the launch’.
The local administration will, however, carry out the rescue drive in the adjacent areas of the river, the DC said.
10 to 12 families thronged the Padma river bank Monday morning in search of their missing relatives.
‘MV Mostafa’, carrying over 150 passengers, sank in the mid-river around 11:45 am on Sunday after it was hit by a fertiliser-laden cargo vessel, ‘Nargis-1’, while it was heading towards Daulatdia ferryghat from Paturia.
Although most of the passengers managed to swim ashore, others got trapped inside the sunken launch.
Navy divers, firefighters and BIWTC rescuers pulled off 41 bodies from the launch till Sunday midnight.
Salvage vessel ‘Rustom’, which reached the spot on Sunday night, managed to pull the sunken vessel to the shore around 4 am.
Police arrested three crew of the cargo vessel – Shahidul Islam, Shahinur Rahman and Jahurul Islam – in this connection. The master of the vessel, Iqbal Hossain, went into hiding.
Meanwhile, the Mercantile Marine Department under the Shipping Ministry has formed a three-member probe body to investigate the incident.
Shipping Secretary M Safique Alam Mehedi visited the spot on Monday morning – UNB
