5 choppers search for 200 fishermen at sea

Guntur/ Rajahmundry/ Visakhapatnam/ Hyderabad: The continuous rains for the past four days have so far claimed two lives in Guntur district and disrupted normal life in Guntur, East Godavari, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts, even as about 200 fishermen from East Godavari district, who had ventured out to the sea, have gone missing.  

Annavarapu Esamma, 35, died after a wall collapsed on her at Kornepadu village of Vatticherukuru mandal of Guntur district, while a seven-year-old boy, G. Ganesh, died in a wall collapse incident in Mandulapalem village of Phirangipuram mandal. The fishermen have been missing since June 17, and five helicopters, two belonging to the ONGC, one each from Coast Guard, Reliance and Cairn Energy, along with an Indian Coast Guard ship and 12 boats have been conducting search operations to trace them.

National Disaster Management Authority rescue teams and Air Force teams would be deployed early Monday morning on the request of AP Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.

According to East Godavari district fisheries deputy director D. Govindaiah, about 240 fishermen in 40 boats hailing from Kakinada, Uppada, Gummadipet and Kottapalli areas of East Godavari ventured in the Bay of Bengal for fishing from Kakinada coast. Of them, about 40 returned in seven boats. Mr Govindaiah said that there were chances of the remaining fishermen straying somewhere near the Paradip Port on the Odisha coast.

Vizag rural police said that two fishermen from Bangarampalem area of S Rayavaram mandal went missing in the sea from June 19. The fishermen, M. Kasi Rao and M. Kotaiah had gone to Prakasam and purchased a boat. While returning from Chirala, they had gone missing.

Meanwhile, rivulets and rivers are overflowing in East and West Godavari districts due to heavy rains. Communication between Kunavaram and Bhadrachalam has been cut. The bridge at Nellipaka has been damaged partially due to the rains. Polavaram Project work has been stopped. The Cyclone Warning Centre, Vizag, has forecast that moderate to heavy rain or thundershowers may occur at many places over coastal AP in the next 24 hours.