Bangladesh storm death toll rises to 12

COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh, May 20 (Reuters) Seven bodies were recovered from the Bay of Bengal today, bringing the death toll to 12 from a storm that swept along the coast of Bangladesh and Myanmar last week, police said.

Four bodies were found on Friday, three days after another man was killed in the storm that damaged hundreds of homes in coastal areas of Cox's Bazar district and on three islands.

Some 80 fishermen on 20 boats have been missing since the storm, a local official told reporters.

Tropical storms and cyclones kill hundreds of Bangladeshis every year. One of the worst cyclones to hit the country killed 138,000 people in 1991.

REUTERS ABM KN1939