More than 100 Bangladesh fishermen missing in storm
BANGLADESH: More than 100 Bangladeshi fishermen were missing
after at least 15 fishing boats sank in a storm in the Bay of Bengal,
witnesses and officials said on Sunday.
The Chittagong port authority issued an international maritime alert
advising all ships and fishing boats to remain in shelters until further
notice, said Syed Farhad Uddin, the secretary of Chittagong port.
Bangladesh’s meteorological department said in a special weather
bulletin that the monsoonal deep depression, which hit the Bay of Bengal
on Thursday night, was moving north-north-west and had reached India’s
eastern coastal state of Orissa.
“Maritime ports of Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar and Mongla have been
advised to keep the local warning signal hoisted,” the bulletin said.
The latest bulletin said the monsoonal low had crossed the Indian
coast near Paradwip on Sunday and the weather system was now over Orissa
and adjoining areas.“It is likely to move in a north-north-westerly
direction further inland and weaken gradually by giving precipitation,”
the bulletin said.
It said squally weather might affect the ports of Chittagong, Cox’s
Bazar and Mongla.
Heavy seas were preventing rescue operations, but authorities said
they would start a search as soon as the stormy weather subsided.
Surviving fishermen said they saw several boats sink. In Cox’s Bazar,
about 10 fishing boats with nearly 100 fishermen capsized. About 80
fishermen made it back to shore.
Officials also warned of flooding, with low-lying areas of several
coastal districts, including Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar and their offshore
islands, likely to be inundated by water surges up to 4 feet (1.2 metres)
high, driven by high winds.
Hundreds of Bangladeshi fishermen die and many go missing in storms
in the Bay of Bengal every year.
Dhaka, Sunday, Reuters |