Two committees have been formed in the incident of ferry capsize at Paturia terminal. The incident of Amanat Shah Ferry capsize is the first in 50-year history.
Within the period of 1980-1986, Bangladesh received 6 large ferries as a grant from Denmark. The sunken ferry is one of them. These ferries have been rehabilitated within 2008-2010.
According to BIWTC sources “Unless the bottom of the ferry is hit severely, there is no possibility of water entering into it.”
The investigation committee reached the spot on Thursday afternoon. Zillur Rahman, deputy general manager of Aricha sector, is not ruling out the possibility of a bottom leak due to getting hit in the bottom.
He further said that the rescue ship Hamza reached the spot on Wednesday and has been rescuing the vehicles on the ferry since then. Attempts are being made to rescue six more trucks from the ferry.
According to BIWTC sources, the ferry left Daulatdia terminal at around 8.45 am on the day of the incident. As soon as it reached the middle of the Padma, the engine worker informed Master Shariful Islam Liton about the rising water in the engine room. Ferries usually travel at speeds of 5 to 6 nautical miles. After receiving the message from the engine officer, it reached the 5th terminal of Paturia with a maximum speed of 15 k nautical miles.
During that time, two of the three trucks carrying goods on the left side of the ferry got off, but the third truck couldn’t. Although 11 vehicles were rescued in two days, efforts are being made to recover the rest of the six vehicles.
The main river route of Bangladesh is Paturia-Daulatdia. This route is usually so busy that it becomes difficult for 25 ferries to cross the river in a day. There are five terminals in Paturia. The No 5 terminal was used for large vehicles.
The obstruction created by the ferry capsize could affect the ferry traffic.
Concerned experts are saying that the ferry needs to be removed as soon as possible.
