By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: As many as 22 out of the 75 people missing from the barge that sank in the Arabian Sea after getting caught in a severe cyclonic storm are confirmed dead, , confirmed the Indian Navy.
“Bodies of 22 persons have been fished out and they are being brought to shore.”
The barge ‘Papaa-305’ had 261 persons on board when it got caught in the storm earlier this week. Of these, 188 persons were rescued. In a statement the Navy said, “188 survivors including two ex Tug Varaprada rescued & 22 Brave Natures Victims (BNV) recovered so far. INS Kochi returned to Mumbai with survivors /BNV.”
As many as 55 persons are still missing. The search and rescue effort is continuing, said the Navy.
This barge as well as two other barges that were hit by the cyclone were deployed by Afcons for a contract it had got from state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
The cyclone sank P-305, which had living quarters for employees working offshore, while two other construction barges lost anchors and drifted away.
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About 600 employees on the three barges belonged to Afcons. Besides the barges, one drilling rig of ONGC ‘Sagar Bhushan’ with 101 people on board (37 ONGC employees and 64 contractual workers), too drifted away from its location.
Sources said all the 137 persons onboard barge ‘Gal Constructor’, which runs aground about 48 nautical miles north of Mumbai’s Colaba Point, have been rescued.
Also, 201 persons onboard barge ‘Support Station-3’ as well as ONGC’s drillship ‘Sagar Bhushan’ too have been brought to safety.
Cyclone Tauktae made landfall on Monday night on the Gujarat coast, which is dotted with oil and gas installations.
While the offshore has fields producing oil and gas, the coast houses two big refineries and some of the busiest ports.
The cyclone, whose intensity is similar to the one that hit Gujarat in 1998, has weakened thereafter.
Helpline numbers have been issued for assistance of the relatives of the rescued personnel.
AFCONS Helpdesk and Support Team: Karandeep Singh – +919987548113 and 022-71987192 and Prasun Goswami – 8802062853
ONGC Helpline: 022-2627 4019, 022-2627 4020 and 022-2627 4021
