Tugboat tragedy: Investigation will be launched, says Bharat Shetty

Mangaluru: MLA Bharat Shetty on Sunday, May 16 said that investigation will be launched into the two tugboat tragedies.

“Government had made all the arrangements to help those who suffered from cyclone Tauktae, but these two incidents came as a shocker,” said Bharat Shetty.

“Investigation will be launched into both the incidents to find the guilty party,” he added.

In the first incident, nine people were on the boat that left New Mangalore Port on Friday to carry out maintenance work at the single point mooring facility, which is located 17 km from the port. One person died and six others were missing.

The boat was caught in the rough seas in adverse weather conditions and capsized while they were returning to the shore on Saturday. The body of one crew member was found near Kaup beach in the Udupi district, while two others were rescued.

A search is on for the rest of the crew members, police sources said.

The damaged boat was found at Katipatna near Padubidri beach in the Udupi district. The tug boat was contracted by Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) for its single-point mooring facility.

In a statement, MRPL said the tug vessel, ”Alliance”, with nine men on board faced distress while assisting the company in cargo unloading at its single point mooring facility.

The company’s cargo operation was completed on Friday and the vessel was supposed to return on the same day. However, it started only on Saturday morning and had to face distress, the statement said.

In the second incident, a tugboat used by MRPL was damaged after hitting into rocks here on Sunday, May 16.

The boat was anchored outside the New Mangalore Port. The boat that was damaged due to the storm reached Kaup later.

The police department and the coast guard officials are trying to bring it back safely to Kaup light house.