DHAKA, April 22: Nearly 200 people were killed in Bangladesh after two ferries capsized and houses collapsed in severe storms on Monday night.

The toll included at least 100 people who died when a ferry sank in the Buriganga river, while another 52 were declared drowned after a boat carrying a wedding party capsized in the Kishoreganj district.

At least 35 people were killed and 400 injured by lightning strikes, collapsing houses, falling trees and the sinking of small boats during the storms in several districts.

The MV Mitali, a double-decker ferry, had between 200 and 300 passengers on board when it went down during fierce rain storms in the Buriganga on Monday.

“The number of bodies so far recovered stands at 100,” said a police officer in the Fatullah area, in nearby Narayanganj, about 20 kilometres east of Dhaka, where the vessel sank.

“The death toll will definitely go up after the ferry is salvaged as some are trapped inside the vessel,” he said.—AFP