At least one female students was killed and 40 passengers were feared dead as an overloaded bus plunged into the Turag river near Amin Bazar bridge in Savar yesterday morning.
Tapan Chandra Barman, who swam ashore immediately after the incident, told reporters that the Dhaka-bound bus of Baishakhi Paribahan at about 11:30am skidded of the highway and fell into the river with around 50 passengers in it.
Mahabubur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Savar police station, told The New Nation yesterday that a Baishakhi Paraibahan bus plunged into the river near Aminbazar Salehpur bridge.
Army personnel and naval divers joined rescue operations nearly two and a half hours after the incident, Deputy commissioner of Dhaka Mohammad Muhibul Haque told reporters at 2pm.
A naval reused ship had arrived at the spot at 9:30 pm for search the ill-fated bus.
Search cameras already sent into the Turag had located it.
Rescuers and witnesses said seven people were rescued but the fate of others still remained uncertain as rescue operation was being hampered for high tide in the river.
A Jahangirnagar University student, Manowara Hossain, one of the eight survivors, who was a third-year microbiology student of the 37th batch, died at Enam Medical College Hospital, doctor Nazimuddin told reporters.
Fire Service Director General Abu Nayeem Mohammad Shahidullah said, “Search cameras have been added in the rescue opration. Hopefully, we’ll find out the bus soon.”
The operation is being hindered due a drift of current, he said. “Also the riverbed is rather uneven and steep at certain spots, which is also hindering the operation.
“Ten hours have already passed and we could not rescued anyone from the bus. I fear that all the passengers locked insides may have died by this time,” he told reporters, adding that a metal detector was being flown from the city of Chittagong to help trace the bus.
The New Nation Savar Correspondent Rafiqul Awal reports that several thousand angry locals had thronged the Dhaka-Aricha highway protesting sluggish rescue initiative. They complained that only three divers were initially engaged but they could not locate the bus even after a ten hours hunt.
Elite law-enforcement agency Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) charged baton on the angry crowed to disperse them.
Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain, The Home Secretary, The Inspector General of Police and high officials of Dhaka district administration, including the deputy commissioner, visited the place of occurrence.
