Death toll in Visakhapatnam tugboat fire accident rises to three

The gruesome fire accident that took place on a tugboat at the outer harbour in Visakhapatnam has killed two more people on Monday. The deceased have been identified as Tasarapu Bhardwaj from Visakhapatnam and Ansar Ulhak from Kolkata. The two victims, who were kept on a ventilator at a private hospital on Sunday, succumbed to injuries after enduring 90 per cent and 65 per cent burns respectively. 

On 12 August, a tugboat, ‘Coastal Jaguar’, was carrying about 29 crew members for civil works when the flames, resulting from a fire accident, engulfed it. Of the 29 crew members, who were on board when the fire broke out on the tugboat, three members have passed away while one member, Vicky Chowhan, is reported to be still missing. Also, Juvin Joshi (of Kerela), who is suffering from 45 per cent burns, was shifted to Mumbai for further treatment on Sunday.

Ashish Kumar, a native of Rajasthan was found dead by the Coast Guard on the same day. While 15 crew members were admitted to the hospital, 5 of them were, discharged by the end of the day and the rest, who had sustained severe burns, were kept under observation.  

Amitabh Kumar, the Director-General of Shipping, has informed that a team has been constituted to look into the matter and produce a casualty report. The report, based on a detailed investigation of the incident, is reportedly expected to be produced by Visakhapatnam Collector V Vinay Chand soon.