Five fishing trawlers came under pirate attack in the Bay of Bengal on Wednesday (April 9) leaving around 50 fishermen injured, including five with gunshot wounds. A total of 68 fishermen were later rescued, following a coordinated operation by local authorities and the Coast Guard.
The attack took place around 7 pm in the Boro Baisda area, located approximately 120 kilometers southeast of Pathorghata in Barguna. The fishermen returned to shore at around 8 pm on Thursday, nearly 25 hours after the attack.
The trawlers involved in the incident were identified as FB Tarek-2, FB Tufan-2, FB Ma-1, FB Abdullah, and FB Junaed—all owned by fishing companies based in Pathorghata, and the affected fishermen are residents of the same area.
Golam Mostafa Chowdhury, president of the Barguna Fishing Trawler Owners’ Association, said that the armed pirates looted the trawlers, disabled their engines, and took away wireless sets. The fishermen managed to alert the shore via a passing vessel. Upon receiving the distress call, we immediately contacted the police and the Coast Guard. Two rescue trawlers were dispatched to retrieve the stranded fishermen.
Barguna Superintendent of Police Md. Ibrahim Khalil said that administrative actions were promptly initiated after receiving the news from the trawler owners.
Pathorghata Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mohammad Roknuzzaman Khan said, "We were informed about the attack on Thursday afternoon through the trawler owners' association. With the help of the Coast Guard, Navy, and the association, we rescued 68 fishermen and brought them to Pathorghata ghat around 8 pm. The injured were taken to the Pathorghata Upazila Health Complex for treatment."
The duty doctor at the health complex reported that five fishermen had sustained gunshot wounds, while three were in critical condition and referred to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in Barisal for further treatment.
Bd-Pratidin English/ARK
