Two fishermen were killed after a ship crashed into their fishing boat near Thrissur’s Edakazhiyur beach in the late hours of Sunday, May 12. The coastal police registered a First Information Report (FIR) against the general cargo ship named Sagar Yuvaraj, en route to Kochi. Apart from the two deceased fishermen, four more were on board the fishing boat and they were rescued with injuries.
As per the FIR, the accident occurred 20 nautical miles north-west of Edakazhiyur, allegedly due to the negligent navigation of the ship’s captain. Sagar Yuvaraj is a general cargo vessel owned by the Lakshadweep administration and it was on its way to Kochi and then to Beypore when it crashed into a boat named Ishlahi, anchored for fishing. The police have registered a case against the ship’s captain and one crew member who worked under the direct command of the captain. They are also probing whether the ship was in national or international waters when the incident took place.
The deceased fishermen were natives of Ponnani, identified as Abdul Salam (45) and Gafoor (47). Both of them passed away soon after the ship crashed into their boat and their bodies were recovered in a search by the Coast Police and other fishermen. The postmortem is scheduled to be held on May 13.
The four other fishermen who were injured in the accident were Badisha (40), Ayoob (43), Majeed (43), and Mansoor (36), all natives of Ponnani, who were reportedly rescued by the ship’s crew themselves.
The ships’ captain and crew member have been booked under Sections 280 (navigates any vessel in a manner so rash or negligent to endanger human life),304-A (causes the death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act), and 337 (causes hurt to any person by doing any act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life) of the Indian Penal Code.