Dozens are feared dead after a ferry and a bulk carrier collided in Bangladesh.
On 20 March, the bulker, Ruoshi-9, collided with the ferry Afsaruddin in the Shitalakshya river near Dhaka.
While more than 20 people managed to swim ashore, bodies of five persons, a man, three women and a child, believed to be passengers on the ferry, capsized. The ferry is believed to have been carrying more than 60 passengers and while 22 of them managed to swim ashore, more than 30 are still missing.
Video footage showed ferry passengers screaming in fear and jumping into the river as the collision happened.
Ferry safety remains poor in Bangladesh, a situation blamed on infrequent maintenance, loose safety standards and overcrowding of vessels.
On 4 December 2021, a fire broke out on the ferry Avijan-10 on the Sugandha River in Bangladesh, killing at least 40 people and injuring more than 100 others. The ferry, which could carry up to 310 people, was found to have carried 800 passengers when the incident happened.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
