Nine fishermen feared dead after boat capsizes off India’s east coast

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

At least nine Indian fishermen were feared dead in the Bay of Bengal after their trawler was hit by a storm.

The tragedy struck near Bagher Char island on Saturday morning when the trawler, with 17 men on board, capsized, said Surajit Bag, assistant director of fishing in the eastern Indian state West Bengal.

The boat ventured into an area hit by a storm and was overwhelmed by high waves, Mr Bag told AFP news agency.

The fishermen had left the Sunderbans in West Bengal on Wednesday. Eight of the 17 men were on the deck while nine were sleeping in the cabin below when the boat ran into the heavy storm, Mr Bag said.

The eight fishermen on the deck were thrown overboard and found by a rescue boat and brought ashore, he added. The nine sleeping men could not be located despite an extensive search by the rescue team and were feared to be dead.

An Indian Coast Guard vessel towed the damaged boat and the survivors back to the shore, Mr Bag told AFP, adding that they were in a stable condition.

It was the second such incident in less than two months in the Bay of Bengal where the annual monsoon sets off bad weather and brings heavy storms and rough seas in the coastal region.

Fourteen fishermen were rescued from the sea last month after their fishing trawler entered stormy waters and capsized. That incident also took place near the Bagher Char island.

India’s weather department had issued a warning for fishermen last month, asking them to avoid going deep into the sea as winds were expected to hit 40-50 km per hour.