Five days later, the stranded tourists returned to shore.

Due to low pressure in the Bay of Bengal, tourists were stranded on St. Martin’s Atoll last Wednesday due to warning signs at the seaport. The tourist boat ‘Karnafuli Express’ left for St. Martin on Sunday morning as the weather normalized due to easing of pressure on Saturday (October 24).

The ship left for Cox’s Bazar on Sunday afternoon with regular return passengers. As a result, the ship with more than two hundred passengers was stranded in St. Martin in hostile weather and some 700 tourists arrived at the jetty at 9:30 pm.

Hossain Islam Bahadur, in charge of the Cox’s Bazar office of the Karnafuli Express, said Karnafuli left Cox’s Bazar for St. Martin’s at 8 am Sunday under administrative instructions as the weather was normal. The ship left St. Martin in the afternoon with the passengers. The ship ran aground in Cox’s Bazar around 9:30 p.m.

He added that on October 21, more than half a thousand tourists visited St. Martin on the Karnafuli ship. The miking is done to bring back those who want to leave in sudden adverse weather. But more than two hundred tourists spend the night. Miking asked tourists who voluntarily stayed on the island to remain in a safe place at their own risk.

Abdur Rahman, an assistant meteorologist with the Cox’s Bazar Meteorological Department, said the signal at the Cox’s Bazar seaport had dropped as low pressure at sea weakened. As the sea is calm, there is no difficulty in navigating the boat.

Tourists were stranded on the coral island on Thursday when there were warning signs in the harbor due to low pressure, said Nur Mohammad, president of Union Martin (UP) in St. Martin. After three days of heavy rain, the weather on the island returned to normal on Saturday. As the weather was clear, the tourist boat ‘Karnafuli Express’ arrived on Sunday and took the stranded people away. Many newcomers have been to St. Martin on Sunday nights.

Meanwhile, stranded tourists have been enjoying themselves on the island since the weather was declared normal on Saturday. They shop at different markets and stores from late to night. UP member Habib Khan said tourists were seen entertaining themselves from afternoon to evening.

Executive Director of Teknaf Upazila. Saiful Islam said that due to inclement weather, shipping on the San Martin route has been suspended for the past few days. So the tourists trapped there were unable to return to the shores of Cox’s Bazar. But stranded tourists are kept safe under administrative supervision. They returned to shore on Sunday when the weather normalized and shipping resumed. He expressed his satisfaction with the St. Martin Police and representatives of the local population for caring for the detainees until they returned safely to shore.

Sayeed Alamgir / MSH