Bangladesh widens search for ferry survivors

Bangladesh widens search for ferry survivors

DHAKA, DEC 30: Bangladesh widened the search on Saturday for hundreds of passengers after an overcrowded ferry sank in thick fog after colliding with another ferry, killing at least 63 people, police and officials said.

Officials expect the toll from Friday's sinking to rise.

The ferry capsized in the Meghna river near Chandpur, 100km (62 miles) southeast of Dhaka. Nearly half the dead were children, said Rafiqul Islam, additional police superintendent in Chandpur.

The ferry was sailing from Dhaka to the coastal town ofPirojepur with about 400 passengers on board. More than 100 had been rescued so far, Islam said on Saturday.

Islam said the police, fire brigade and volunteers werehelping search for the missing passengers.

"We have also called in divers and are using fishing netsto intensify the search," an official at Chandpur Police Control Room said on Saturday.

A rescue tug raised the sunken ferry on Friday afternoonbut no bodies were found inside, police said.

"The death count is likely to go up but it may be difficultto say exactly how many have perished," one official said.

The other vessel involved in the accident, also a passengerferry on its way to Dhaka from another coastal town, suffered damage but no one onboard was hurt, police said.

They said they seized the ferry after it reached Dhaka onFriday afternoon and its crew were being questioned as part of an investigation ordered by the authorities.

Ferry accidents occur regularly in Bangladesh whereauthorities are either unable, or neglect to enforce laws restricting overcrowding of vessels and other safety regulations.