Bangladesh rescues 24 more cyclone survivors from sea

The Bangladesh Navy said on Friday it has rescued 24 more fishermen from the Bay of Bengal, bringing the total to 80 since a cyclone pounded the country's coastline three days ago. Two naval vessels plucked the fishermen from waters near Cox's Bazar and Kutubdia island — two of the areas worst hit by the storm.

"Members of the navy rescued them as they were floating in the sea," a spokesman for the navy said.At least 70 fishermen are still missing. The navy has deployed 18 ships to conduct an extensive search and rescue operation across Bangladesh's entire maritime territory in the Bay of Bengal after Cyclone Mora killed seven people and destroyed thousands of homes.

The ships are also carrying food, emergency relief and two medical teams to hard hit Kutubdia and Saint Martin's Island.A navy helicopter and a maritime patrol aircraft are conducting aerial searches for survivors, it said.

As the cyclone advanced on Bangladesh, local authorities increased the maritime threat to its highest level and ordered all fishing vessels to remain at port.Mushtaq Ahmed, a fishing industry representative in Cox's Bazar, said eight boats had failed to return.

"We thanked the navy for rescuing our men. But still 70 fishermen and eight boats are missing. We hope they'll continue the search operation until the last fisherman is accounted for," he told AFP.

He said the fishermen could be moored on a island or adrift at sea. In the past most of the fishermen returned to their fishing ports within a week or two.