Death Toll at 500 in Bangladesh Storms

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Rescuers Thursday recovered the bodies of 50 people drowned in the Bay of Bengal, where five fishing boats capsized in heavy winds and rains, raising the death toll from Bangladesh’s worst floods in 75 years to 500.

Heavy rainstorms have hit the southern part of Bangladesh since early August, and President Hussain Mohammed Ershad said official surveys indicate that 16,600 square miles of land, or about one-fourth of the country, is under water. Authorities said about 20 million people have been affected by the floods, with 6 million stranded.