KISHOREGANJ, Bangladesh - A crowded ferry sank during a tropical storm in northern Bangladesh, killing at least 42 people and leaving more than 40 missing, officials said Tuesday.

The death toll from the accident late Monday could rise because some of those missing were feared trapped inside the sunken ferry, said local government administrator Sultan Ahmed.

Salvage workers were trying to raise the wreckage of the ferry, which was submerged under nearly 30 feet of muddy water, Ahmed added.

At least 150 people were aboard the MV Chanpur when it was caught in the storm and sank in the Ghorautra River, said Mizanur Rahman, a police official in the area about 50 miles north of the capital, Dhaka.

Citing survivors' accounts, Rahman said more than 60 people either swam to safety or were rescued by area residents.

Both officials said rescuers recovered five bodies overnight and 37 more were found Tuesday: seven children, 15 women and 20 men.

About 44 others were still missing, they added.

Rescue work was suspended overnight due to darkness, and resumed Tuesday.

Such accidents are relatively common in Bangladesh, a tropical delta nation with about 250 rivers. Ferries are a common form of transportation.