At least 18 people have been drowned and 30 went missing in three separate boat capsize incidents in Sirajganj, Kushtia and Munshiganj, according to reports reaching here. In Sirajganj, six people were confirmed dead and around 25 went missing after a boat capsized in the river Jamuna at Charmituani in Chouhali upazila of the district on Thursday morning.Confirming the incident, Md Shamsul Haque, Officer-in-Charge of Chouhali Police Station, told this correspondent that strong current in the river caused the capsize around 11:00am .When it reached near Baguchia point in the river, it flipped due to the strong current, he said.The mechanized boat, carrying 70 to 75 passengers, bound for Char Salimabad from Michuani Char. However, 20-30 passengers managed to swim ashore.On information, police and locals rushed to the spot and recovered two bodies from the river near Baguchia point around 11:30am.Three hours later, they recovered two more bodies from the same spot, said Abul Kahar Siddiqui, chairman of Bagutia Union Parishad of the upazila. Later, two more bodies were recovered by the local people around 1:00pmThe deceased Nayan Tara, 50, Ilu Begum, 28, Anguri Khatun and Rashida Khatun, 15, were residents of Char Salimabad and Michuani Char villages of the upazila, while the identities of two others could not be known immediately.Sources in the upazila administration said a team of divers from Dhaka are expected to arrive at the spot very soon to launch a search for the missing in the river.Meanwhile, the death toll reached 10 on Thursday with two still missing two days after a boat capsize on Tuesday with 19 passengers on board in the River Padma near Bairagir Char of Daulatpur in Kushtia.Since the early hours on Thursday, police have recovered ten bodies of the passengers from six different places in the river. The deceased were identified as Mala Akhter Poli, Sabrina Siddika Bibha, Kalu Malitha, Shikha Khatun, Shahajul Islam, Shipon Ali, Bithi Akhter, Imran, Swapan Ali, Mala Akhter and the body of an unidentified girl child.Rescuers said the boat, on a pleasure trip with about 19 passengers, flipped over on Eid Day on Tuesday. Seven among the people managed to swim the shore. At least 2 passengers were still missing. Of the bodies, three were recovered from Raitaghat area, eight kilometres away from the spot, two from Talbaia and one from Poldier area in the morning, confirmed the District Administration.Eight people were rescued alive by local people immediately after the boat had capsized on Tuesday. Hearing hue and cry, locals rushed to the spot and rescued the eight while the rest remain traceless, they said.Local administration, Fire Service and Civil Defence and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) of Kushtia sector are giving logistic support to the rescue team.In another boat capsize on Thursday, two people died and two others were injured as a small boat capsized in a water body at Tongibari in Munshiganj district.The deceased were identified as Tania Akhter, daughter of Latif Miah, and Afsana Akhter, daughter of Delwar Hossain of Nitaiganj in Narayanganj.Assistant Sub-Inspector of Tongibari police Mosharraf Hossain said a group of six people, all relatives, went on a boat trip in the afternoon in a water body (beel) at the village of Mariyalaya Belua where the boat overturned.Two of the passengers managed to swim ashore while the four others drowned.Local people rescued the four and rushed them to a hospital where Tania and Afsana were declared dead.The injured — Jubayer and Sami Akhter — were undergoing treatment at the hospital.
