The bodies were recovered along the Maharashtra coast by teams of Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard, and their identification was under process with the local authorities and ONGC, said officials.
Cyclone Tauktae: All persons on board P-305 and Varapada accounted for
BL Soni/ FPJ Photo
Mumbai, May 24: All the crew members of Barge P-305 and tug boat Varaprada which capsized because of Cyclone Tauktae have been accounted for. The Indian Navy recovered 70 bodies while 8 bodies each washed ashore the coastline of Raigad district in Maharashtra and Valsad in Gujarat. Verification process of these bodies to ascertain that they were from the two boats is happening, said Navy officials.
The Navy had launched a massive search and rescue operation after barge P-305 with 261 crew members sunk at Arabian sea, 70 nautical mile from Mumbai, after being hit by Cyclone Taukate. Later a tug boat Varaprada, which was send for the rescue of Barge Gal Constructor, with 13 people on board also sank due to the cyclone.
Barge P-305, which housed personnel engaged in maintenance work of an offshore oil drilling platform run by ONGC, sunk on Monday off the Mumbai coast due to cyclone Tauktae
Barge P-305, which housed personnel engaged in maintenance work of an offshore oil drilling platform of state-run oil and gas major ONGC, sank on Monday evening off Mumbai coast.