Tandava boat mishap: Searches on to trace 10 missing persons

A team of expert divers from Navy today launched extensive search operations to trace 10 missing persons, a day after a country-made boat capsized in Tandava reservoir in Andhra Pradesh.

The mishap occurred when 14 villagers of Ammapeta in Golugonda mandal in Visakhapatnam district were returning in a
country-made boat, after worshipping a local deity on a
hillock.

The seven-member team launched searches in the reservoir this morning  for the missing persons, mostly children aged between 10-12, with the help of villagers, Visakhapatnam Rural SP Vineet Brijlal, who is supervising the operation, said.

Bodies of two girls, who drowned in the boat tragedy have been retrieved from the reservoir while searches are on for 10 others, who are feared to be drowned, he said adding two persons swam to safety yesterday.

As the boat was passing through the Tandava reservoir, one of the passengers saw a snake in the boat which led to panic among others and all of them went on one side of the boat, following which it capsized, the SP said quoting one of the survivors.