6 Fishermen Missing After Boat Mechanical Failure Off Visakhapatnam; Coast Guard Leads Search
Search operations involving the Indian Coast Guard, the Navy and the Marine Police, supported by Navy helicopters, have been underway since Sunday morning off the coast of Visakhapatnam to locate six missing fishermen.
The fishermen went missing after their fishing boat reportedly developed a mechanical fault in the Bay of Bengal. The Andhra Pradesh government sought the assistance of the Indian Coast Guard for the search operation.
The missing fishermen are from Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district and Bheemunipatnam (Bheemili) in Visakhapatnam district.
According to East Coast Mechanised Fishing Boat Owners Association president V Janakiram, seven fishermen had sailed out of the Visakhapatnam Fishing Harbour on July 1 and were scheduled to return by July 4. On July 3, officials from the Fisheries Department, Marine Police, port authorities and the boat owners’ association contacted the crew and warned them about rough sea conditions due to a low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal, asking them to return immediately. The fate of six of them remains unknown.
