A tourist has died after falling into the sea during a parasailing ride at Cox’s Bazar, in an accident that has renewed concerns over unregulated water sports operators along the beach town’s coastline.
What Happened
The incident occurred around 12:30 pm on Saturday at Dariyanagar beach, along the Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf Marine Drive. The victim was identified as Akshar Shouvik Roy, 30, of Khulna, who was visiting Cox’s Bazar with a group of nine tourists. According to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Model Police Station Officer-in-Charge Sheikh Mohammad Ali, Shouvik fell into the sea while on the parasailing ride and was seriously injured.
Beach staff rescued him and rushed him to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital, where he was brought in at 2:10 pm. Resident Medical Officer Dr Subaktagin Mohammad Sohel said Shouvik was declared dead on arrival, and that the exact cause of death would be confirmed through a postmortem.
Operator Ignored Suspension Order
Mahmudul Hasan, executive magistrate of the district administration’s tourism cell, said the ride was operated by Fly Air Sea Sports Parasailing, a company that has run the activity at the beach for more than a decade. He said the district administration had already instructed all parasailing operators to suspend activities that day due to adverse weather conditions, but the operator involved continued offering rides in violation of the directive. Following the accident, the company’s staff and owner reportedly fled the scene, and the body was kept at the hospital morgue.
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A Pattern of Unregulated Rides
Cox’s Bazar Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Abdul Mannan said no operator has ever been officially authorised to run parasailing activities on the beach, adding that authorities have repeatedly shut the operations down only for them to resume after some time. Nazrul Islam, member secretary of the Cox’s Bazar Citizens’ Movement, said several operators continue offering parasailing at various beach points while ignoring safety regulations, noting that none of them maintains international-standard safety measures, trained staff, rescue boats, or first-aid facilities.
Parasailing accidents have been a recurring problem at Cox’s Bazar in recent years, with previous incidents including tourists sustaining leg and waist injuries after falls, and one rider becoming stuck in a tree during a ride. Saturday’s death marks one of the more serious outcomes from what local advocates describe as a long-standing pattern of unsafe, unregulated water sports activity along the beach.
Authorities have not yet confirmed whether legal action will be taken against the operator following the incident. With the postmortem report still pending, the exact cause of Shouvik’s death is expected to be confirmed in the coming days, as pressure builds on the district administration to enforce a lasting halt on unauthorised parasailing operations at Cox’s Bazar.
Summary: A tourist from Khulna died after falling into the sea while parasailing at Cox’s Bazar’s Dariyanagar beach on Saturday. He was rescued and rushed to hospital but declared dead on arrival, with authorities noting the operator had ignored an order to suspend rides due to bad weather.
