We express deep concern about the missing of over 50 people in the Bay of Bengal. They went missing after 20 salt-carrying trawlers capsized during a nor’wester that lashed Chattogram’s Anwara and Banshkhali coasts of the Bay of Bengal on Wednesday.
However, some people have been rescued after ten salt-laden trawlers sank off the Anwara upazila coast due to they a storm in the Bay. As they were close to the coast, they managed to swim ashore. Their trawlers while coming from Kutubdia overturned and sank when a storm started on Wednesday morning.
Trawler owners claimed that many sailors are still missing. At least 20 trawlers loaded with salt from Kutubdia, Maheshkhali and Banshkhali of Cox's Bazar were caught in the storm at Anwara coast around 8 am on Wednesday. The relatives of missing people think they (victims) might have died as their engine-driven trawlers capsized in the Bay.
Wednesday’s tragic incident is a stark reminder that it is vital to refrain from plying water vessel especially engine-driven trawler during storm. People especially day labourers and fishermen continued to meet the tragic end of their lives in the Bay of Bengal, and there seems to be no end in sight. Salt-laden trawlers, fishing boats and working vessels in the Bay are frequently overloaded, making them top-heavy and susceptible to capsizing. We often see some day labourers and fishermen come back alive while many other either go missing or meet the tragic end of their lives.
Hundreds of day labourers and fishermen either have gone missing or died in different coastal districts of the country as they have to fight against storms, floods and turbulent waves constantly while fishing or doing other works in rivers and seas in our country.
The day labourers and fishermen are always requested to follow the weather forecast and warning and asked not to venture into the sea during bad weather. But, they always have a tendency to violate the forecast saying if they sit idle, they would have to face starvation.
Relatives of missing people
think they (victims) might
have died
The tropical cyclone is the generic term for a non-frontal synoptic scale low-pressure system over tropical or sub-tropical waters with organised convection and definite cyclonic surface wind circulation. Bangladesh is frequently visited by natural disasters such as tropical cyclones, storm surges and floods. Many people living in the coastal districts depend directly or indirectly on salt trading or marine fishing for their livelihood. But they have to face high risks of serious injuries and death in sea due to inadequate lifesaving equipment.
In Bangladesh, every year over 1,350 day labourers and fishermen die in the sea, in boats without the basic safety equipment – or even clean drinking water, a study says. The day labourers, who work in fields and transport the salt by trawlers from one place to another, are contributing to our salt industry. And our fishermen earn foreign exchange from abroad by exporting fish.
But, most of the time boat or trawler owners do not provide them life jacket, life buoys and other lifesaving equipment. Therefore, the government will have to provide all kinds of assistance to the day labourers and fishermen especially those who catch fishes in the sea.
Besides, the authorities will have to monitor the situation closely and will provide updates as necessary to ensure the safety of those involved in plying trawlers in the sea for their livelihood. On the other hand, the day labourers and fishermen must remain close to the coast and proceed with caution during bad weather.
The day labourers and fishermen are strongly advised not to venture into sea during the period of any storm. We are appealing for help tracing the missing people since Wednesday immediately.
