Passengers missing after ferry sinks

a ferry has sunk in Bangladesh after being struck by a sand barge. About a dozen people were reported missing, although no bodies have yet been found. It was initially feared that 50 people had died.

Police said earlier that the ferry, which had been carrying passengers across the river at Narayanganj – about 12 miles from the capital Dhaka – had been rammed.

Ferry sinkings are common in Bangladesh, killing hundreds of people every year, as operators overload vessels and flout safety regulations in spite of repeated government pledges to ensure enforcement.