40 boats gutted in massive fire at Vizag fishing harbour

Visakhapatnam: At least 40 mechanised fishing boats were gutted in a massive fire at Vizag fishing harbour on Sunday midnight. The cause of the fire has not been ascertained yet. The fishermen and local police said that the fire that started from one of the boats spread to other boats that were anchored nearby.

"There were 500 boats in the anchorage at the time of the incident and 100 of them caught fire. We could save 60 boats which were partially damaged but 40 have been completely gutted,’’ said AP Mechanized Boat Owners Welfare Association president Janakiram.

Each boat costs around Rs 60 to Rs 80 lakh. The incident caused panic as the LPG cylinders in the boats exploded with a huge sound.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) K Anand Reddy said five fire tenders were pressed into service to bring the fire under control.  So far, there is no report of loss of life, he added.

The police and fire-service personnel said that they will ascertain the exact reasons for the fire-mishap once they bring the fire under control.