A police officer associated with the operation said that the condition of the bodies indicated that it was carried out by pirates. The trawler and its fishermen may be from outside Cox’s Bazar district.
Ghiyas Uddin, a trawler owner in the area, said that this type of trawler usually has at least 20 fishermen. Some other bodies may be trapped inside the trawler as half of the ship is still under water.
He said that it is a risky job to go there and do rescue work.
OC Rafiqul Islam said that after the completion of the rescue operation, the bodies would be sent to Sadar Hospital for post-mortem. They were trying to identify the fishermen.