Bangladesh Ferry Sinks With 19 Dead

Witnesses said a salvage ship reached the accident site around noon on Thursday and was trying to lift the sunken vessel.

At least 19 people were killed when a ferry sank in a river in southern Bangladesh following a collision with a cargo vessel on Thursday, police said.

Dozens of people remain missing from the ferry that sank with more than 150 passengers when rescue operations were suspended for the night, police and rescue officials said. Around 80 passengers had been rescued or had reached safety, although more than a dozen needed hospital treatment, they said.

"We have suspended the rescue operation as it is not possible to continue for lack of light," said Riad Hossain, an official of the state-run Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority, which regulates ferries.

Police said rescuers retrieved the bodies from the partially raised ferry and the waters of the Kirtonkhola river in Barisal district, about 170 kms (100 miles) from the capital, Dhaka.

One resident said it was difficult to assess the scale of the disaster because, as is common in Bangladesh, there was no proper passenger manifest.

Ferry accidents kill hundreds of people in Bangladesh every year. Many accidents are caused by overloading or by the inexperience or negligence of the crew.