Tragedy struck at Cox’s Bazar’s Himchari Beach this morning as three students from Chattogram University were swept away by powerful waves while bathing in the sea. One of them has been confirmed dead, while two others remain missing as of the time of reporting.
The deceased has been identified as Sadman Rahman Sabbab, 21, son of KM Anisur Rahman from Pallabi, Mirpur in Dhaka. He was a first-year student of the Development Studies Department, enrolled in the 2023–24 session.
The missing students are Aritra Hasan, son of Aminul Islam from Dakshin Sonsonia village in Bogura, and Asif Ahmed, son of Rafiqul Islam from Naruli Dakshin in Bogura Sadar. Both are also students of the same department and academic year at Chattogram University.
According to Additional DIG of Tourist Police Apel Mahmud, the body of Sabbab was recovered shortly after the incident. “Search operations are underway to locate the other two students,” he said.
Imtiaz Ahmed, a representative of the SeaSafe lifeguard organisation, informed that five students had come to Cox’s Bazar together. On Monday morning, three of them entered the sea at Himchari Beach despite rough conditions, while the other two remained on the embankment.
“They were swept away by strong currents. We managed to recover Sabbab’s body, but Aritra and Asif are still missing,” Imtiaz said.
Local lifeguards, members of the Fire Service, and Tourist Police are continuing coordinated search and rescue operations amid challenging weather conditions caused by ongoing rain and a turbulent sea.
