Advertisement

Updated December 27th, 2021 at 23:17 IST

Bangladesh arrests ferry owner after blaze that killed 41

Bangladesh arrests ferry owner after blaze that killed 41

| Image:self
Advertisement

Dhaka, Dec 27 (PTI) Bangladesh's elite anti-crime Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) on Monday arrested the owner of an overcrowded ferry that caught fire and killed at least 41 people last week, as investigators found the blaze was caused by the vessel's faulty engine.

"We have arrested one of the owners of the launch (ferry), Mohammad Jalal Sheikh from Dhaka's Keraniganj area where he was hiding," a RAB spokesman said after a court ordered the arrest of eight people, including owners of the vessel MV Obhijaan-10, its master the crew.

Advertisement

Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), earlier, had filed a case against the accused persons.

The government has constituted a seven-member committee of officials and fire experts to submit a report on the incident, which is due in two days.

Advertisement

The fire broke out at the ferry Friday last week, when it was heading to southern Barguna from Dhaka, carrying nearly 800 passengers. While most of the victims were trapped inside, many drowned as they jumped into the midstream of the Sugandha River in Jhalakathi district.

This accident was the latest in a number of similar incidents in Bangladesh, a small country criss-crossed by a network of over 200 rivers. The watercourses cover nearly 7 per cent of the total area of the country.

Advertisement

An overloaded speedboat, allegedly driven by an inexperienced underage boy, capsized in Bangladesh after a collision with a sand laden vessel in May this year, killing at least 26 people.

In June last year, a ferry carrying over 100 passengers capsized in the Buriganga river in Bangladesh after it was hit from behind by another ferry, killing at least 32 people.

Advertisement

In February 2015, at least 78 people died when an overcrowded ship collided with a cargo vessel. PTI AR IND AKJ IND

Advertisement

Published December 27th, 2021 at 23:17 IST

Your Voice. Now Direct.

Send us your views, we’ll publish them. This section is moderated.

Advertisement
Advertisement

Trending Quicks

Nandre Burger was the peak of the bowlers as his four wicket haul rattled the Indian batting lineup
a minute ago
Besham, Shangla
12 minutes ago
Arvind Kejriwal
13 minutes ago
Greater Noida Student Commits Suicide
19 minutes ago
Shahjahan Sheikh in CBI Custody: First Visual Emerges | WATCH
20 minutes ago
Mumbai: Fire Breaks Out at Multi-Storey Building In Malad
23 minutes ago
Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project
24 minutes ago
M Jagadesh Kumar
27 minutes ago
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Whatsapp logo