40 fishermen drown as cyclone sweeps B'desh

Coast guard divers who searched the tiny offshore islands for survivors saved more than 150 fishermen.

At least 40 fishermen were feared drowned over the weekend in Bangladesh after nearly a dozen trawlers sank as cyclone swept the Bay of Bengal coast, rescuers and witnesses said on Sunday.

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Coast guard divers who searched the tiny offshore islands for survivors saved more than 150 fishermen. "Several fishermen had taken refuge in the rice-growing islands with their wind battered trawlers," said Bangladesh Coast Guard Commander Nazrul Islam.

Islam said the search operation for the missing fishermen would continue despite driving monsoon rains.

Officials in the southern Bangladesh port of Mongla said the missing were among those fishermen who had ignored the overnight storm signals.