DHAKA — Four fishermen have died and nine more are missing after a boat capsized in the Bay of Bengal in southern Bangladesh, DPA cited an

official as saying on Saturday.

Coastguard Lt. Arifuzzaman Rony said rescuers had found four bodies adrift in the water after the engine-propelled boat with 26 fishermen aboard sank in the bay.

According to sources at the local Coast Guard, the trawler ‘FV Zanzabil’ sank with 26 people on board early in the morning.

“The Coast Guard and Navy along with local fishing trawlers launched a rescue operation soon after the trawler went down,” said a Coast Guard official, adding, “The sunken trawler is yet to be traced.”

The boat capsized nearly 65 kilometers from Saint Martin's island, the southernmost tip of Bangladesh.

Thirteen people were rescued, he said, adding that the operation was still under way as emergency crews continued their search for those who were still missing.

Inclement weather and dense fog might have caused the accident that occurred in the morning, Rony said, according to the survivors. — SPA