A pregnant woman and a girl child went missing while bathing in the Jamuna River in Manikganj's Daulatpur upazila on Wednesday afternoon.
The missing individuals have been identified as Barsha Khatun, 20, daughter of Md. Abdul Boyati, and Lamia Khatun, 10, daughter of Md. Rahej Boyati — both residents of Bachamara Purba Para village.
According to locals, the incident took place around 2pm behind the house of Yusuf Ali Sheik under Bachamara union. Five women and children had gone to bathe in the river. At that time, they were suddenly swept away by a strong current. Three were rescued alive, but Barsha and Lamia could not be found.
Md. Zahid Babu, a local resident, said that despite immediate efforts by villagers, the two remained missing. A diving team from Aricha Land and River Fire Service and Civil Defense Station in Shibaloy later conducted a two-hour search operation.
However, due to the onset of darkness and the river’s strong currents, the divers were unable to locate the missing persons.
Md. Nadir Hossain, Warehouse Inspector of Aricha Fire Service, confirmed that four divers were involved in the operation. “The rescue work was suspended for the night and will resume at 10am on Thursday,” he said.
Daulatpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge ARM Al-Mamun said police also joined the rescue efforts. He noted that the strong currents posed significant challenges to the search operation.
