A cargo vessel carrying around 13,50 ton of coal, sank in the Bhairab River in Khulna's Abhaynagar upazila on Saturday.
All 12 staff members of the ship named “MV Suraiya” managed to swim ashore, said its captain Shohag Hossain Raju.
The ship sank within hours after a crack appeared at the bottom of the ship on Saturday morning, he said.
Masud Parvez, deputy director of Nawapara river port said the coal importer informed them that the ship was stuck in mid-river.
“At noon, I found out that the ship had sunk. A team has been dispatched to the spot and the matter is being investigated,” he added.
Accidents of coal-laden vessels in the Sundarbans mangrove forest area have been reported many times in recent years, with the green groups expressing concern over the contamination of water.
On Thursday, a cargo vessel sank in the Pasur River in Mongla of Bagerhat with 600 tons of coal.
MV Fardin-1, a lighter barge or shallow-draft vessel, transporting 600 tons of coal sunk after it collided with a vessel near Harbaria-9 of the forest on November 15 last year. Several staff of the vessel died.
On March 30, another vessel named MV Efty Mahmud carrying 700 tons of coal sank in the Pasur River close to Mongla Port.
