Dredging ships collide

Kochi, Oct 25 (UNI) Two dredging ships, Cochin Port Trust (CPT) controlled 'Nehru Shadabdi' and 'Dredger-80' of the Dredging Corporation of India, collided in mid-sea off the Kerala coast yesterday.

According to a CPT spokesman the head-on collision, which took place about four nautical miles off the Kochi port, occured when the CPT ship was returning to the harbour after depositing sand in the sea. The front portions of both the ships were damaged.

The spokesman said 32 crew members of both the ships were safe and the CPT had ordered an inquiry into the incident. Later, the ships were towed to the harbour, he added.

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