Godavari boat tragedy toll touches 38, 13 still missing

By Express News Service

KAKINADA: Another body was fished out from River Godavari at Devipatnam, just a few miles away from Kachaluru where private tourist boat Royal Vasishta got capsized on September 15, taking the toll in the mishap to 38. Search is on for another 13 missing persons. As many as 26 persons survived the mishap.

Search and rescue teams fished out the body of a woman at Devipatnam on Tuesday and shifted it to government general hospital in Rajamahendravaram. The body was in a decomposed state and the identity is yet to be established.

Meanwhile, confusion continues over the exact number of people on board the boat, when it capsized. While some officials are saying that there were 75 persons on the ill-fated boat, others put the number at 77. On the other hand, family members of the missing persons allege that the bodies that got washed to Vijjeswaram Lock in West Godavari district were not retrieved by the officials in time, leading them getting washed away into the sea.

However, officials maintain that all the bodies found floating in the river are being retrieved. “Search and rescue efforts will not stop till the last missing person is traced,” said a senior official.

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