A lighter vessel carrying around 1,400 tonnes of cement clinkers capsized in the Bay of Bengal after it was hit by another lighter vessel this morning.

Thirteen people onboard the vessel were rescued soon after the incident, our Chittagong correspondent reports quoting Abul Kashem, master of MV Tito-13 which rescued the crew.

The vessel named MV Tito-12 started for Munshiganj from Chittagong port and sank near Hatiya coast in Noakhali after MV Suhi-3 hit it around 9:00am, said Nabi Alam, general secretary of Lighter Vessel Workers Union.

The incident occurred due to a strong current of the Bay, he said.