Bagerhat: A tourist launch caught fire at Harbaria under Chandpai Range of the Sundarbans in Mongla upazila on Friday evening.

M Saidul Islam, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the Sundarbans East Zone, said the fire erupted in a cabin of the tourist launch, ‘Felikon-1’, at about 7:00pm. Soon it engulfed the entire launch.

However, seeing smoke billowing out from the launch, forest employees from Harbaria station rushed in and rescued all the 39 inmates, the DFO said, adding that no one was injured in the incident.  

Two rescue teams of Bangladesh Coast Guard rushed in and they along with the forest employees doused the fire at about 9:45pm, he said.

The tourist launch carrying 39 people, including 26 tourists and 13 staff, from Khulna entered the Sundarbans at about 12:00pm, Saidul said.

He said the fire broke out after the boat was anchored in a canal near the Harbaria station.

The tourists, all employees of a garment factory in capital Dhaka, were being taken to Mongla by a boat, said the DFO.

It was still not clear what actually caused the fire.