Sunday boat ride turns into tragedy for two families, several others in Kerala

Malappuram (Kerala): Shahul Hameed, an auto driver, rushed to the Thoovaltheeram beach in his three-wheeler on Sunday night on hearing of the tragic boat accident and as rescuers piled into his vehicle some children fished out from the water, he never realised they were his sister's kids.

His sister and her three children were among 12 members of his family, hailing from Parappanangadi here, who died in the tragedy that claimed 22 lives, majority of whom were women and children.

"I rushed to the beach in my auto on hearing of the accident. When I reached there, rescuers put some children taken out of the water in my auto and I rushed them to the nearest hospital.

"It is on reaching the hospital that I realised that they were my sister's children. My sister and her three children died in the accident," he told a news channel.

Five others from his sister's family and three relatives also died in the tragedy which brings to the fore several violations of the rules governing boat rides by the owner of the vessel and those who were operating it.

A similar heartbreaking story came from Chettipadi village here where four members of a family, a mother and her three children, died in the accident.

Two others of the family are reportedly hospitalised in a critical condition. Being a Sunday and also school vacation season, many families like that of Hameed and the one from Chettipadi had gone to the Thoovaltheeram for the boat ride -- the closest amusement spot from their homes.

While it turned into a distressing incident for those two families and many others, some escaped with their lives after deciding not to board the boat at the last moment.

Two brothers, Isaac and Ibrahim, from Kondotty here, who had gone to the area with their families for a good time on a weekend holiday and it was a difference of opinion among them -- over how safe the boat ride would be -- that resulted in them avoiding the same fate of the 22 who died in the accident.

The brothers told a news channel that they were there only for the children to enjoy at the amusement park, but someone pointed out that there were boat rides also which the adults could enjoy.

"However, there was a difference of opinion among us about its safety and therefore, we decided to avoid it. We went back to the area where the children can play and while there we heard a boat had overturned in the river.

"Later when people were brought ashore in smaller boats did we realise it was the same vessel that we were supposed to board that had sank," they said.

They also said that the boat was "overcrowded" and "packed beyond capacity" and that the person operating it was exhorting more people to board it by saying it was the last trip.

While it did turn out to be the last trip for many, Shamsudeen and his family group of eight too managed to avoid the tragedy.

Shamsudeen told a TV channel over the phone that when the boat in question was coming back for its last trip, he saw that the boat was tilting to one side and at that moment he decided to cancel the four tickets he had brought.

"I pointed out the problem to the person operating the boat and he said there was nothing to worry about. He also said that there was no need for taking a ticket for the children. There were five children in our group.

"But I decided not to board the boat anyway," he said.

Local residents of the area also told news channels that the boat was packed beyond its capacity of 20 persons and that its operators did not heed warning of onlookers that the vessel was tilting to one side.

"It was a tragedy which was invited. It could have been avoided if the boat was not overcrowded or if it had not been operated beyond the permissible time. When the boat reached a bend in the river, it overturned as it was already tilting to one side," local residents said.

Another resident said there was no government machinery or infrastructure, like lights and ropes, available in time for rescue operations and it was the local fishermen who came with these items for rescuing people from the water.

He also said that many more who could have escaped to safety could not do as the boat was covered with glass on all sides and there were only two doors out of which people could come out.

This is what one of the one of the survivors of the incident, Tanur-native Shefeeq, also said.

Shefeeq, who had gone on the boat ride with some friends, said as he was sitting atop the boat's roof, when it tilted he was thrown clear.

"Those who were inside the boat, however, could not escape as there were only two exit doors, all the windows were covered with glass and many of them being children, they could not hold their breath underwater for long," he told a news channel.

He said he and his friends tried to rescue as many people as possible and hauled them on to the boats which came to rescue the passengers.

"We gave CPR to many, most of them children who had swallowed water and were lifeless. It was so tragic. We did all we could. I suffered an injury to my leg and was taken with the survivors to the hospital," he said.

While 22 people died in the tragedy, 8 others were rescued and are undergoing treatment at various hospitals, district officials said. The boat, which was carrying more than 30 people, capsized near an estuary close to the Thoovaltheeram beach in the Tanur area around 7:30 pm on Sunday, officials said.