Ferry with 200 passengers capsizes near Dhaka

A rescue operation was underway involving divers, the rescue vessel MV Rustom, and a helicopter, said officials with the Bangladesh Inland Water Transportation Authority. The ferry capsized around 11 a.m. local time (0600GMT), officials said. Local television stations are reporting that about 100 people have been rescued. Dhaka, a city of more than 15 million people, is located in central Bangladesh, on the east bank of the Buriganga River. The ferry capsized on the Padma River, and officials said heavy waves might have contributed to the accident. Deadly ferry accidents have occurred at least twice in Bangladesh in recent months. On May 15, a private ferry capsized in the Meghna River Thursday on its way to the southern district of Shariatpur with around 300 passengers aboard, 54 of whom died. And two weeks earlier, on May 3, at least 15 people died in a similar accident on the Golachipa River in the southern district of Patuakhali.