A cargo ship carrying urea fertilizer sank in the Bhairab River near Shubharara in Abhaynagar, Jessore, after its bottom cracked and water entered the vessel.
The incident occurred on Sunday morning, when the MV Seven Seas-4 cargo ship, loaded with approximately 850 tons of urea fertilizer, submerged in the river.
According to officials, 45 tons of fertilizer were unloaded on Saturday, and an additional 400 tons were recovered in a wet condition on Sunday.
The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) had imported the fertilizer from abroad, with Summit Associates serving as the transport contractor.
BCIC sources said that urea fertilizer is imported in large ships to Chittagong Port and Harbaria in Mongla Port. From there, the fertilizer is transferred to smaller cargo vessels and transported to Nawapara in Abhaynagar.
After unloading at Nawapara, it is then taken by truck to buffer warehouses in several southwestern districts.
Jewel Hossain, the master of MV Seven Seas-4, said: "We loaded the fertilizer on the night of February 3 and reached Shubharara Ferry Ghat in Abhaynagar on the night of February 5. The ship had been anchored there since then.”
He added: “On Saturday, we unloaded 900 sacks (45 tons) of fertilizer. At around 8pm, during low tide, the river water receded significantly, and the vessel’s bottom made contact with the riverbed.”
He further added: “There was a hard object—possibly a stone or another solid material—on the riverbed, which struck the ship’s hull, causing it to crack. When the tide returned at around midnight, water began entering the ship, and it slowly started sinking. By this morning, the vessel had fully submerged in the river."
He also said: "Water entered the cargo hold, damaging a significant amount of fertilizer. Today (Sunday), we managed to recover around 400 tons of urea fertilizer from the ship."
Obaidul Haque, manager of Summit Associates, said: "We have not received any information about a fertilizer-laden cargo ship sinking in the Bhairab River at Abhaynagar."
Earlier, on January 25, another cargo ship, MV Western-2, carrying around 700 tons of wheat, capsized in the Bhairab River near Siddhipasha in Abhaynagar after water entered the vessel.
