Staff Reporter:
A lighter vessel carrying 1,175 tonnes of cement clinkers capsized in the Rupsha River in Khulna on Thursday night.
The vessel, MV Seven Circle-23, sank after colliding with the pillar of the Rupsha River rail bridge, said Lieutenant Commander Md Siam-ul-Haq, media officer of the Coast Guard Headquarters, on Friday.
He said that the ship was damaged about 2 feet below the water level, causing waters to begin entering the vessel. On information, the Coast Guard promptly dispatched a rescue team from BCG Station Rupsha with a diving boat.
Upon arrival, the team observed that more than half of the anchored lighter ship had sunk.
All 13 crew members aboard the ship are safe, with no injuries reported, he added.
The Coast Guard has already contacted the ship’s owner and is continuing the rescue efforts.
