Thirty bodies --19 men, eight women and three children -- have been recovered as a launch named ML Morning Bird sank near the Farashganj ghat of Buriganga in Dhaka.

The incident happened around 9:33am on Monday, Fire Service headquarters control room In-charge Enayetur Rahman confirmed Dhaka Tribune.

Meanwhile, media reports, citing the CCTV footage fo the horrifying collision, have said that the incident took place at 9:13am.

The bodies have been sent to Sir Salimullah Medical College (Mitford hospital) morgue for further legal procedure.

Among the deceased, one has been identified as Sumon Talukder, employee of Jamuna Bank’s Islampur branch, by his elder brother Sharif Talukder. Sumon came from Munshiganj’s Mirkadim area to join his office.

Meanwhile, many people have gathered in the Shadarghat area in search of their beloved.

Rojina Akhter, duty officer of the fire service headquarters, said ML Morning Bird was hit by another launch, Moyour-2, which was bigger than its size. The launch soon went under water.

Sadarghat Police Officer-in-Charge Rejaul Karim Vhuiyan said Morning Bird was coming from Kathpotti area of Munshiganj with around 50 to 60 passengers, when the other launch hit it.

The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), fire service, river police, coast guard and Bangladesh Navy’s diving team are carrying out the rescue operation, he added.

Locals and eyewitnesses said the bigger launch hit the smaller one from the back. After the blow, ML Morning Bird took a turn and started drowning from the back. Some of the passengers managed to swim to the land.

They also said that accidents are common in ghats like this as launch and boats are docked here in a haphazard manner.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina deeply mourned the deaths and extended her condolences to the victims' families, said a statement from the press wing of her office. The statement said she was closely monitoring the developments of the rescue and salvage attempts.Report:DT