In a tragic incident on the high seas, 17 Burmese and three Bangladeshis died of starvation and dehydration after their boat drifted in the Sri Lankan seas for 13 days, a Navy official said.

D.K.P. Dassanayake, Sri Lankan Navy spokesperson, told Mizzima that following a tip-off by local fishermen, the Sri Lankan Navy on Monday rescued 71 people, 50 Burmese and 21 Bangladeshis, from a wooden vessel on the eastern coast of Sri Lanka.

"The survivors said their boat drifted on the sea for 13 days after the engine stalled. And they ran out of food and water. Because of this 20 of them died on board," Dassanayake said.

Dassanayake, quoting the survivor's said, the vessel with 91 people, 67 Burmese and 24 Bangladeshis, had left Cox's Bazaar, on the Burma-Bangladesh border, on February 9.

But on February 20, the vessel developed an engine snag, and drifted for 13 days, until they were spotted by Sri Lankan fishermen in the east of the island country.

"The survivors said, they threw the bodies of the 20 people overboard," Dassanayake said.

"They have now been taken to the northeastern port of Trincomalee and are being provided with food and medicine," added the navy spokesperson.
Dassanayake said the Burmese and Bangladesh nationals were heading for Thailand and Malaysia in search of jobs.

He added that this was the first such incident where the Sri Lankan Navy rescued people from Burma and Bangladesh.