Tragedy strikes Srinagar locality, boat capsizes, 6 people including mother, her 2 sons die, 3 still missing, 10 rescued
At least six people, including a trio from the same family – mother and her two school-going twin sons died after a wooden boat capsized in the Jehlum River on Tuesday morning.
Official sources said that 19 people were on the ill-fated boat when it capsized. The incident occurred in the Gandabal area of Srinagar outskirts when the people including school children were crossing the river in a big wooden boat from one Gandabal bank to the Batwara river bank.
Top officials rushed to the spot to assess the situation while locals and teams from the National Disaster Response Force, the State Disaster Response Force, and the police launched a search operation for the missing passengers.
Deputy Commissioner Srinagar Bilal M. Bhat told the reporters that six persons lost their lives in the incident while some are still missing and others have been rescued and they are stable. He said the incident occurred at 8 am Tuesday. “We are trying to ascertain the actual number of people present in the boat,” he said.
Pertinently the distance between the Gandabal and Batawara localities is 500 metres by boat while the nearest bridge is 3km away which forces residents to take the risky ride. A footbridge near the area where the mishap took place has been under construction for nearly a decade. Almost everyone has been appealing to the government to start an inquiry to find out why the work on the bridge was not completed in time.
Locals told the news agency Kashmir News Trust that most of the people on the boat were good swimmers, however, the river was in spate on Tuesday morning due to incessant rains.
Dhooduram – a non-local eyewitness to the incident said that the boat was tethered with a rope to a cable for support and it got damaged when it hit an iron pillar in the river due to the heavy flow. The damage due to the impact of the crash led to its capsizing. He said three children including a girl were rescued shortly after the mishap. “I think there were 15 to 20 people on the boat,” he said.
An official said that 19 people mostly residents of Gandabal were on the boat. “Nineteen people, including schoolchildren, were in the boat when it capsized. While ten people were rescued, six bodies were retrieved and three persons including two children are still missing.”
The deceased have been identified as Shabir Ahmed Bhat, Raziya Bano, Gulzar Ahmed Dar and Firdous and her two sons Tanveer Fayaz and Mudasir Fayaz, all residents of Gandabal.
Three person who are still missing and are feared dead include Farhan Waseem, Haziq Showkat and Showkat Ahmed Sheikh, all residents of Gandabal.
Those who were rescued are Masrat Begum, Irhada Bilal, Mehraj Dar, Noor Muhammad, Aisha Bilal, her sister Insha Bilal, Humaira Shabir, Muhammad Rafiq Bhat and Mushtaq Ahmed Sheikh, all residents of Gandabal locality.
Of the three missing, official sources said two are reported to be schoolchildren.
Expressing grief and shock, Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha said: “The administration is providing all possible help to the bereaved families and medical facilities to those injured. Marcos teams have also been alerted. I am constantly monitoring the situation.” [KNT ]
