Boat overturns in Orissa Hirakud dam, 15 dead, 20 missing

Bhubaneswar, Feb 10: At least 15 people died and 20 others were reportedly missing after a boat carrying tourists from Sambalpur town overturned due to overloading in Hirakud Dam Reservoir (HDR) in Orissa on Sunday afternoon.

The deceased have been identified as Anita Singh (40), Seema Agrawal (38), Usha Agrawal (35), Santosh Kumari (50), Suchismita Jena (30), Harish Agrawal (10), Paviz Sharma (38), Purba Sharma (18) and Tania Sharma (15), said a New Indian Express report. Some of the bodies are yet to be identified. Reportedly the boat didn't have safety equipments.

Around 120 passengers along with 30 motorcycles were in the boat

Reports said that around 70 members of Lions Club and 50m passengers along with 30 motorcycles were in the boat when the mishap happened. The Lion Club members had gone for a picnic to Marang Dungri in Jharsuguda district after crossing the HDR in a motor fitted county boat on Sunday morning. They boarded the boat at Sonutikra Ghat, about 14 kilometers from Sambalpur town at around 4.15 pm.

After moving about 15 minutes, water started gushing into the boat from bottom. In a few minutes, boat had to be stopped due to some technical snag and started capsizing in the middle of the HDR.

Rescue teams along with fire brigade and police personnel are at the spot now, said sources. About 80 persons have been rescued so far. Sambalpur Sadar Sub Collector Surendra Panda had confirmed death of 15 persons and said that still at least 20 persons were missing.

Oneindia News