Passengers safely transferred to other vessels

One person was killed in a fire that broke out on a ship anchored in Cox's Bazar before its scheduled voyage to St Martin's Island.

The blaze erupted around 6:30am on the vessel The Atlantic Cruise while it was anchored in the Bakkhali River near the Nuniachhara BIWTA jetty, said Wakil Uddin, port officer of the BIWTA.

The deceased was identified as Nur Kamal, 25, a resident of Teknaf and a staff member of the ship. He was reportedly asleep on board at the time of the incident.

Syed Muhammad Morshed Hossain, deputy assistant director of Cox's Bazar Fire Service and Civil Defence, said, "We received information around 7:00am and rushed to the spot. Three fire service units are working to bring the fire under control."

"Initially, the ship authorities said the fire originated from an electrical short circuit," he added.

Cox's Bazar Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Tanzila Tasnim said the fire broke out while the vessel was anchored and preparing for its journey to St Martin's Island.

She confirmed there were no tourists on board at the time.

Hosain Islam Bahadur, general secretary of the Sea Cruise Operator Owners' Association of Bangladesh, said around 180 passengers had been scheduled to travel on the vessel, but the fire started before boarding began.

He added that the passengers were safely transferred to othePublishing optionsNot publishedr ships.

Following the incident, Cox's Bazar Deputy Commissioner Md A Mannan visited the jetty and announced the formation of a five-member investigation committee to determine the cause of the fire.