Bangladesh ferry accident kills 43: police

At least 43 people died in northeastern Bangladesh Friday after a ferry capsized and sank, police said, the second such accident in the impoverished nation in a week. The police chief of Kishorganj district, Anwar Hossain, said the passenger ferry sank on the Daira river, around 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of the capital Dhaka, at about 9:30 a.m. (0730 PST). "We have so far found 43 bodies," Hossain said. "We are unsure exactly how many people were on board. Hundreds are gathering on the side of the river. Rescue operations are still on." Shah Kamal, the chief government official in Kishorganj district, told a foreign news agency that children were among the victims. "Some of the bodies we have found are of children," he said. "We are estimating that the ferry was carrying around 100 passengers and the rescue mission is ongoing," he said via telephone from the scene.