Cargo ship sinks off Hatia, 12 sailors floating in the sea

A cargo vessel named MV Maumoni, carrying 12 sailors, capsized in the Bay of Bengal off the eastern coast of Hatiya in Noakhali‍‍`s island-upazila.

The incident occurred around 12 noon on Thursday (April 25) near Hatyar Islam Char.

Following the distress call, the sailors reached out to the 999 hotline for assistance. Subsequently, the Hatia Naval Police and Coast Guard were notified and dispatched for rescue operations. Two teams from the Coast Guard and Nalchira Naval Police rushed to the scene with rescue equipment from Nalchira Ghat.

Confirming the incident, Mehdi Zaman, in-charge of the Hatia Naval Police outpost, stated, "The accident occurred in the Bay of Bengal estuary. Given the rough conditions of the river, it may take some time for them to reach the site. However, as of the latest update, all sailors are reported to be afloat on the sunken vessel."

Shortly after the naval police response, a team from the Hatia Coast Guard mobilized to the scene with a trawler.

According to Mohammad Ohayedul Islam, one of the ship‍‍`s owners, speaking to Independent Television via mobile, "The vessel encountered adverse weather conditions leading to the accident." While the exact cause remains unclear, initial communication with the ship‍‍`s crew was possible, but has since been hampered by a lack of mobile network connectivity. The vessel was en route from Chittagong to Dhaka with cargo, with a crew of 12 sailors aboard.