At least 28 dead after river ferry capsizes

Villagers and rescuers pulled the bodies from the River Meghna in Brahmanbaria and divers were looking for more, said local police chief Jamil Ahmed.

Some passengers swam ashore but the authorities did not know the exact number of those missing, he said.

The ferry apparently went down after hitting the wreckage of another cargo ferry that sunk a few days ago.

Mr Ahmed said police would investigate the accident, which took place about 50 miles east of the capital, Dhaka.

Ferry accidents, often blamed on overcrowding and lax rules, are common in Bangladesh, a nation of 150 million people.

Anxious relatives gathered on the river bank awaiting news.

Forty-year-old Din Islam said his wife and five relatives were on the ferry and he feared all of them had been killed.

“I have lost all of them, found two bodies, I want them all,” he said.

Survivors said the ferry was overcrowded and most passengers were asleep when it overturned.