DHAKA, March 26 (Xinhua) -- At least eighteen bodies were retrieved after a bus carrying dozens of passengers plunged into the Padma River from a pontoon at a terminal in Bangladesh's Rajbari district, some 125 km south of Dhaka, on Wednesday.
The accident occurred at around 5:15 p.m. local time on Wednesday when the Dhaka-bound passenger bus lost control, overturned, and sank to an estimated depth of 80 feet, according to the Fire Service.
Sultana Akhtar, Rajbari's deputy commissioner and district magistrate, told Xinhua that there were around 40 passengers on board the bus.
"So far, the bodies of eighteen people, including 10 women and 2 children, have been retrieved," she said.
Officials said two bodies were initially recovered. Subsequently, they said the rescue vessel Hamza lifted the submerged bus at 11:50 p.m. local time on Wednesday, during which 16 more bodies were found.
Several witnesses told local television channels that only 10 to 11 passengers managed to swim ashore.
Officials feared the death toll might rise, as more bodies are likely to be retrieved with the search and rescue operation still underway. ■
