Body of American-Bangladeshi woman recovered in Sundarbans

Her death ends the expatriate family’s vacation in tragedy

Coastguards have recovered the dead body of a non-resident Bangladeshi woman who went missing two days ago after a boat had capsized during her tour through the Sundarbans.

Bangladesh's Coast Guard spokesperson Lieutenant Commander Siam-ul-Haque said the body was retrieved on Monday morning from the confluence of the Pashur and Shyala rivers, near the Silo Jetty area of Joymonir Ghol in Mongla.

The dead, 28-year old Riyana Abjal, lived in the US and was the daughter of Abul Kalam Azad, a resident of Uttara in Dhaka. Their ancestral home is in Barishal. She was a pilot in the Bangladesh Air Force and had moved to the US a few years ago.

Riyana had gone missing on Saturday afternoon, after a tourist boat capsized at the confluence of the Pashur and Dhangmari rivers in the mangrove forest.

There were 13 tourists, including women and children, on board. Some of the passengers managed to swim ashore, while others were rescued by locals. However, Riyana remained missing.

She had come to Bangladesh with her family and was staying at an eco-resort named “Mangrove Valley” in the Dhangmari area of the Sundarbans.

She and her family had been traveling by boat toward the Karamjal tourist centre when the boat carrying her sank failing to withstand waves created by a speedboat.

Siam said the body has been handed over to the Chandpai River Police Outpost.