Death toll from Karnaphuli trawler capsize rises to six

River Police recover two more bodies while a survivor dies in hospital

The death toll from a trawler capsize in the Karnaphuli River in Chattogram has increased to six after the River Police recovered two more bodies and a survivor died in hospital.

Police recovered one body on Wednesday night, a day after the trawler sank near the Isanagar Sea-Resource dockyard and seven people on board went missing.

Four more bodies were recovered by Thursday afternoon.

The victims whose bodies were pulled from the river are Chief Officer Md Saiful Islam, Captain Faruk Bin Abdullah, Dock Member Rahmat Mia, Fish Master Zahir Uddin and Second Engineer Zahirul Islam.

Greaser Pradeep Chowdhury and an unnamed person were still missing.

Md Raihan, assistant sub-inspector of Sadarghat River Police, said Abul Bashar, who swam ashore after the accident, died while undergoing treatment at Chattogram Medical College Hospital.

“One body was found near the Bridgeghat area in the dead of night while the other two drifted to the estuary and were found near the Padma-Meghna-Jamuna Oil area,” Md Ekramullah, chief of local River Police, said earlier.

Divers of the Fire Service and Civil Defence were still working to find the other missing people, said their leader Md Hanif Mia. The divers started work on Wednesday but their efforts were disrupted due to strong currents.

The steel body trawler Magferat was kept at its company’s private dockyard at the Sea-Resource jetty for a revamp.

As the trawler was being pulled to the yard, its propeller broke and it veered out of control. It hit the other fishing boats and buoys near the jetty and capsized.