Report - Launch Disaster in the River of Padma

Over 100 Dead in Launch Capsize in Padma

Hasan Mahmud, Dhaka, 16 August: More than 100 people including about 40 children and women died in the launch accident in the early morning yesterday in the river of Padma near Faridpur town, some 169 kilometers south-west of Dhaka. The river police and local people have so far recovered 81 dead bodies from the capsized launch, which collided head on with another launch due to poor visibility as dense fog blanketed the river route.

Police and eye witnesses said the double-decker MV Rajhongsho with about 250 passengers, most of whom were daily wage earning women and children, immediately sank 30 feet deep into the river after being hit by a Dhaka-bound launch MV Jolkapot, which escaped undamaged and reached Dhaka safely. As the passengers were asleep, most of them could neither manage to come out of the launch nor jump or swim ashore.

Only those who were on the roof could swim ashore, said the survivors, adding that the victims were mostly babies, small children, and women. The police attributed the accident to the overloading of passengers and dense fog of early morning. A three-member inquiry committee headed by a Deputy Secretary of the Shipping Ministry has been formed to probe into the accident.