(File photo of Muslims flee from a sinking ferry in Tongi, some 20 Kms from Dhaka on December 15, 2002.)
The death toll of Tuesday's boat sinking in a central Bangladesh district rose to ten on Thursday morning, after another five bodies were retrieved.
The bodies were recovered from the Panguchi River in the country's Bagerhat district, some 178 kilometers southwest of the capital, Dhaka, local police said.
The jam-packed boat, carrying some 70 passengers, sank on Tuesday.
"Another five missing bodies were recovered on Thursday morning which brings the total death toll to 10 from five on Wednesday," Moniruzzaman Mithu, additional superintendent of police in Bagerhat, district told Xinhua over phone.
He said a search operation is still under way for 13 people still missing.
The boat has been dragged to the bank, he added.
Masud Sarder, a deputy assistant director of Bangladesh Fire Service and Civil Defence, said the rescuers have been struggling against a strong current and choppy river waters.
"The boat sank due to overloading," he said.
Ferry and boat disasters are common in Bangladesh, which is crisscrossed by about 250 rivers. Ferry is still a key means of transport in the country, and most of them are often overcrowded.
(Source: Xinhua)
