The New Nation - Internet Edition

Our Correspondent, Barisal

Dead bodies of missing two victims who were drowned in a boat capsize on Meghna River on last Friday night, were recovered on Sunday afternoon. Md. Yunus Ali, sub inspector of Hizla and Liakat Ali of Mehendiganj police station confirmed this report.

They said to the journalists that local fishermen recovered the dead bodies of two missing victims named Sekandar Gazi, 44, and Salauddin Farazi, 47, from a shoal at Lalkharabad under Char Ekkoria union of Mehendiganj upazila at about 4:30 pm on Sunday afternoon.

It may be mentioned that a boat carrying seven passengers capsized on Meghna River near Batarchar of Dhulkhola union under Hizla upazila of Barisal district on Friday night after an oil tanker named OT Sharmin Sagor plying on Chittagong-Mehendiganj route hit the boat without showing any cautionary signals. The seven day labourers were returning home after agricultural works at Batuar Char of Hizla to Palpara and Dadpur of Mehendiganj on Friday evening.

Local people and fishermen rescued five passengers identified as Muhammad Ali, Basir Gazi, Alamgir Mridha, Fazle Gharami and Sobahan Bepari.

The rest two passengers Sekandar Gazi, 44, of Uttarer Char and Salauddin Farazi, 47, of Shashipur under Mehendiganj upazila of the district, were missing.

Meanwhile, ferry service operation at Dapdapia ferry ghat on Barisal-Patukhali highway has been disrupted for four hours after launch hit the ferry pontoon on Kirtonkhola River on Saturday night, resulting one was missing.

The missing man was identified as Rafiq, 32, a resident of Barisal Rupatali gas Turbine area and employee of Opsosin Chemical Industries. Shilmoni Chakma, officer in charge of Nalchhity police station, said that police registered a general diary in this connection and dead body of the victim has yet not been recovered.

Police and witnesses said that MV Sundarbon-2, a triple-decker passenger launch plying on Jhalakati-Dhaka route and hit the pontoon of Dapdapia ferry ghat during anchoring at the adjacent lunch ghat at about 9:00 pm Saturday night. Four of the road transportation passengers standing abroad the ferry fall in to river from the ferry pontoon instantly. Local people, fishermen and transport workers rescued 3 of them and Rafiq remained missing. The road communication on Barisal-Patuakhali-Barguna route became disrupted for four hours long after the incident and resumed at about 1:00 am early Sunday night with intervention of police and local people.