Eight passengers of a picnic trawler have embraced watery grave while six others gone missing following collision with a sand-laden bulkhead in the Padma River in Lauhaganj of Munshiganj.

According to sources, the trawler carrying 46 passengers fell victim to the accident Saturday night.

Eight people were killed, 32 rescued and the rest were missing, said Rafi Al Faruk, duty officer of Fire Service and Civil Defence.

He said the trawler sank following collision with a sand-laden bulkhead around 8:00pm.

Bodies of six persons were recovered in the first place while those of two were found later raising the death toll to eight, he added.

Many of the passengers could swim ashore, he said, adding eight including women and children drowned.

The picnic trawler was sailing from Mawa point of the Padma river to Sirajdikhan. When the trawler reached Roskati area of Iderpara union, a sand-laden bulkhead hit it.

Talking to Daily Sun, Officer-in-Charge of Lauhaganj Police Station Khandaker Inam Hossain said police and firefighters carried out rescue operation.