Fishing boat runs into seawall

KOLLAM: A mechanised boat on a fishing expedition carrying seven persons got badly damaged when it lost control and ran into a coastal seawall at Eravipuram here on Sunday. One of the crew members, identified as Joseph, was seriously injured. Others escaped with minor injuries. Joseph has been admitted to the district hospital and he was declared out of danger by Sunday evening. It was a group of people residing on the Eravipuram coast who came to the rescue of the boat crew on hearing them wail out for help. The boat had set sail from Kavanad by 11 p.m. on Saturday.

The steersman’s dozing off has been cited as the cause of the accident. A team from the Neendakara coastal police station and the Fisheries Department reached the accident site. Though an attempt was made to retrieve the boat with the help of five mechanised fishing boats, it was unsuccessful.