Hundreds Missing After Deadly Storm in Bangladesh

The Associated Press

DHAKA, Bangladesh - At least 12 people were killed and dozens more injured Saturday when heavy rain and high winds lashed southern and central Bangladesh.

Nearly 50 fishing boats with several hundred fishermen aboard were missing in the Bay of Bengal after the storm whipped up a 3-foot tidal surge.

The storm leveled hundreds of mud and straw huts, uprooted trees and destroyed rice and vegetable crops. Wind toppled electrical poles and snapped wires, leaving many areas without power for hours. Rice and vegetable crops were also damaged.

In the capital, Dhaka, streets and houses were knee-deep in water. Cars were stranded in flooded streets.

The rainstorm, caused by a depression, weakened after crossing the Bangladeshi coast and then moved northeast, the Meteorological Office said.

Flooding since Sept. 18 has affected nearly 4 million Bangladeshis.