Experts from Visakhapatnam brought in to remove boats from Prakasam Barrage

On 11 September 2024, new teams arrived to help dismantle and remove the three boats stuck at the Prakasam Barrage gates (67, 69, and 70) in Krishna River, Vijayawada. Efforts on the previous day to retrieve the boats using two ‘Bahubali cranes’ over five hours had failed, as the boats did not budge. With this initial plan unsuccessful, the engineering team shifted to a new strategy.

Andhra Pradesh Irrigation Minister Nimmala Ramanaidu informed reporters on Wednesday that the department’s engineers, in collaboration with experts from Bekem Infra Projects Pvt Ltd, enlisted skilled divers from Visakhapatnam and Kakinada to free the heavy boats.

A team of around 50 professionals, including 11 from Sea Lion Offshore Diving Pvt Ltd in Visakhapatnam, was brought in for the operation. Bekem Infra also brought in 11 more experts from Visakhapatnam and will recruit four additional scuba divers from Kakinada to go underwater and cut the boats.

“These experts will dive in and dismantle the boats, cutting them into smaller pieces using specialized cutters,” the minister explained. Currently, divers are using gas cutters underwater to split one boat at a time into two halves. Depending on their size, the boat parts will either be pulled to the riverbanks or released downstream.

earlier, there were several attempts to remove the wooden boats, each weighing between 40-50 tonnes, with heavy cranes. All efforts failed as the boats, tangled with plastic ropes and weighed down by accumulated sand, remained lodged against the barrage gates.

“The operation, which began on September 9, was abandoned the next day as the cranes couldn’t dislodge the boats due to the entanglement and sand buildup,” Ramanaidu said.

Once the boats are cut, irrigation department officials will decide whether to release the debris downstream or use cranes and air balloons to lift the pieces away from the barrage.

The Prakasam Barrage incident occurred on the night of September 1, when five boats collided with the barrage at gates 67, 69, and 70 after all 70 gates were opened to release floodwaters downstream.

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