In a tragic incident, two fishermen from the coastal area of Thiruvananthapuram died during the early hours of Monday morning after their boat capsized off the Muthalapozhi coast in the district. Five people were on the boat, which overturned after it rammed into a rock, following which three of them managed to swim to safety while two of them could not.
The Anchuthengu coastal police have identified the deceased fishermen as 56-year-old Lazar Thomas, who is a native of the Anchuthengu village, and 55-year-old Rocky Benjinos, who is a native of the Sarkara village, both places situated on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram. The bodies of both fishermen, according to the police, were later retrieved by other fishermen. Their bodies were taken to the Chirayinkeezhu taluk hospital for postmortem.
“The fishermen went into the sea for fishing around 5 am on Monday. For over a month, we have been sending them warnings, to not venture into the sea as the conditions have been unfavourable,” said a coastal police official of Anchuthengu. He says that they have a WhatsApp group of the coastal police, on which they pass on messages to the fishermen, whose elected representatives are also part of the group. “But they keep ignoring our warning messages and venture into the sea. What can we do?” the police official added.
While Thiruvananthapuram is forecast to receive light to moderate rainfall, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a weather warning for fishermen for the next 24 hours from 12 noon of August 12, Monday. “Strong winds from Northwesterly direction speed reaching 45-55 kmph likely along and off Kerala coast. Fishermen are advised not to venture into the sea,” it read.
On several occasions, the Muthalapozhi coast in Thiruvananthapuram, according to the police, several boat accidents have happened on this particular coast. As per reports, there have been several protests by the residents and fishermen to find a solution to prevent boat accidents along the coast in such a way that their livelihood isn’t affected. It has been reported that as of 2018, around 38 fishermen have died in boat accidents along the Muthalapozhi coast.