Ferry sinks with 100 aboard in Bangladesh & 13 dead

[Lankan Ranger]

Ferry sinks with 100 aboard in Bangladesh & 13 dead

A ferry carrying about 100 passengers capsized in a river in eastern Bangladesh on Thursday, leaving at least 13 people dead and dozens more feared missing, a police official said.

Local police chief Jamil Ahmed said villagers and rescuers plucked 13 bodies from the River Meghna in Brahmanbaria and divers were looking for more.

Many passengers were able to swim ashore after the accident, but the number of missing was unclear, he said.

The ferry apparently went down after hitting the wreckage of another cargo ferry that sunk a few days ago, Mr. Ahmed said.

He said police would investigate the accident, which took place about 80 km east of the capital, Dhaka.

Ferry accidents, often blamed on overcrowding and lax rules, are common in Bangladesh, a delta nation of 150 million people.

The Hindu : News / International : Ferry sinks with 100 aboard in Bangladesh; 13 dead

 

[ProsperBD]

R.I.P to those who died, I cannot be any more frustrated with stupid incidents like this. Hopefully things get better with political unrest and Hasina does not care about her fellow bangladeshis dying instead she wants to rattle muhammed yunus cage until the poor old man gives up.. but as time goes on Bangladesh will be better Inshallah.

 

[Ajaxpaul]

May God give their relatives and loved ones strength to overcome this tragic loss. Overcrowded boats, a lot similar to Kerala. Anyways RIP.

 

[Avisheik]

I dont get the fact that the bangladeshi ferries and launches are full of lifebuoys on the railings, yet nobody uses them?? Anyway RIP to those who died in this incident

 

[Roybot]

RIP.

What I don't understand is that why people in South Asia don't learn to swim?

 

[Obambam]

Not something that I want to read about early on in the day... RIP

 

[eastwatch]

In any civilised country when a man dies in an accident investigations are made to determine the correct cause of that accident. When it is determined compensations and/or insurance payments are made to the victims' nearest relatives.

No one in those countries would blame God unless it is a tidal wave, earthquake, cyclone or a tsunami. A careless accident may cause the the transport minister or even the PM to resign.

But, in Bangladesh no laws have yet been enacted that forces a proper investigation by the concerned authority. Victims die at the hands of irresponsible people, but they come with an excuse that they were taken away by Allah, and it is pre-determined.

Even our irresponsible ministers utter the same excuse. There is a gulf of difference between the attitude of the westerners and us. Even in India, sometimes a minister may resign in a similar case, but not in Bangladesh.

 

[Adnan Faruqi]

Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji'un.

 

[kobiraaz]

RIP.

What I don't understand is that why people in South Asia don't learn to swim?

Not everyone has the physical ability to swim in a mighty river like Meghna!

 

[Roybot]

Not everyone has the physical ability to swim in a mighty river like Meghna!

Mate its not that, 99% of the people in the sub continent can't swim at all! If you know any swimming your chances of survival in such accident increases without a doubt! There was a report in BBC couple of years ago, how 17000 kids drown and die every year in Bangladesh! I am sure the figures for India/Pakistan would be just as bad. For some reason there is no swimming culture in South Asia. Something needs to be done about this!

Here we go,

A recent study discovered that drowning is the leading cause of death for Bangladeshi children - 17,000 lose their lives annually, while 68,000 have close escapes.

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Aussie lessons for Bangladesh lifeguards

 

[Tiki Tam Tam]

It is most unfortunate.

It happens every year.

In a country, where river transport is a common means of ferrying goods and people, such accidents will occur as road and rail accidents occur the world over.

However, the cause of such accidents have to be ascertained by an independent body of experts and safety rules tightened.

In Kolkata, there is a regular ferry between Kolkata and Howrah. There is overcrowding and the steamers are old. God forbid, an accident is in the offing though. The Govt is apathetic toward it, the steamer owners want to reap their profits and so they flog their old boats, and the passengers could not care less since they want to reach home fast and not get caught in the traffic jam on the Howrah Bridge.

All are at fault - the Govt, the owners and even the passengers who overcrowd.

May God rest the souls of the dead in this ferry accident and may God give their families the fortitude to bear the loss.

On the issue of swimming,even if one can swim, one has to understand that swimming in a river where there are high tides and high currents is not the same as swimming in a Olympic sized pool.

That is why even those who know swimming, while bathing by the riverside, get washed away and their bodies are found floating by the River Police a few days later.

 

[TOPGUN]

Very sad news.. RIP & may GOD bless there souls.

 

[Kinetic]

Repeated sad news today. RIP.

 

[Al-zakir]

"inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi'raji'oon.

This is almost regular occurrence in Bangladesh. Every year some ferry or passenger ship sink and innocent people die. I think main problem is over loading the ferry with passengers and goods. Until this issues are addressed, this thing will happen again. Government must place strong monitoring system and passenger also needs to be responsible.