2007 Thattekkad boat disaster

Last updated

Thattekkad boat tragedy
Date20 February 2007 (2007-02-20)
Time6:30 pm (IST, UTC+05:30)
Location Thattekkad, Kerala, India
Typeboat capsizing
Participants37
Deaths18

The Thattekkad boat disaster occurred on 20 February 2007, when a tourist boat sank in Thattekkad near Bhoothathankettu on Ernakulam-Idukki district border. [1] 15 students, 2 teachers and 1 employee of a private school in Ankamaly, who went on an excursion died in the accident. [2]

Contents

Details

The excursion group boarded on three boats from Bhoothathankettu area, twenty kilometers away from Kothamangalam. The boat that sank was returning from a visit to the nearby Thattekad bird sanctuary. The accident happened on 20 February 2007 at 6:30 pm local time at Ovunkal jetty in Periyar, one kilometer away from Thattekad bird sanctuary. [3] 37 people were traveling in the boat. According to preliminary conclusions, the bottom of the boat in which the excursion group was traveling was shaken and the water entered the cause of the accident. But the then DGP Raman Srivastava, who held a press conference the day after the incident, said that the accident happened because the boat overturned. After the accident, it was clear that the boat involved in the accident was not licensed. [4]

Aftermath

Following the incident, justice M.M. Pareed Pillay filed a report in which he proposed comprehensive legislation addressing inland transportation and made around 86 recommendations, including making swimming an extracurricular subject. [5] The owner and driver of the boat P. M. Raju was charged with involuntary manslaughter and immature and careless boating. He was sentenced to five years in jail and 1 lakh rupees were fined. Later in 2021, the imprisonment was reduced to two years. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

PS <i>General Slocum</i> Passenger steamboat; sank in New York City in 1904

The PS General Slocum was a sidewheel passenger steamboat built in Brooklyn, New York, in 1891. During her service history, she was involved in a number of mishaps, including multiple groundings and collisions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transocean</span> Offshore drilling contractor

Transocean Ltd. is an American drilling company. It is the world's largest offshore drilling contractor based on revenue and is based in Vernier, Switzerland. The company has offices in 20 countries, including Canada, the United States, Norway, United Kingdom, India, Brazil, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhoothathankettu</span> Dam

Bhoothathankettu is a dam and tourist spot in Ernakulam district in Kerala,. It is situated outside the village of Pindimana, about 10 km away from the town of Kothamangalam and 50 km away from the main city of Kochi. The original natural dam has been supplemented by a modern dam impounding the Bhoothathankettu Reservoir.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duck tour</span> Tours on purpose-built amphibious vehicles

Duck tours, are tours that take place on purpose-built amphibious tour buses and (modified) surplus amphibious military vehicles, like DUKWs ("Ducks") and LARC-Vs. They are often offered as tourist attractions in harbor, river and lake cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ride the Ducks</span> Former duck tour operator

Ride the Ducks was a national duck tour operator and eponymous tourist attraction in some parts of the United States and Guam. It made use of amphibious vehicles, nicknamed "ducks", to provide tours of cities by boat and by land.

<i>Flying Phantom</i> Tugboat that sank in 2007

Flying Phantom was a tug built in 1981 for the Clyde Shipping Company and based in Greenock in Scotland. As a consequence of business takeovers and mergers, by 2001 she was owned by Svitzer Marine Ltd of Middlesbrough, though still based on the Clyde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Sierra Leone ferry accident</span> Maritime disaster in Sierra Leone

The 2009 Sierra Leone ferry accident occurred on 8 September 2009 off the coast of Sierra Leone, when a wooden Teh Teh ferry travelling from Shenge village to Tombo sank during a storm. At least 90 people to date have been confirmed dead, and over 100 others have been listed as "missing". So far, only 39 survivors have been rescued. Several of the passengers were children who had been on holiday, though the official passenger manifest did not include them. An attempted rescue operation ended on 11 September. The sinking is the worst such accident in Sierra Leone since 2002, when a boatful of refugees capsized. The Xinhua News Agency in China has likened the disaster to other major marine accidents in recent years.

The Thekkady boat disaster occurred on 30 September 2009, when the double-decker passenger boat Jalakanyaka sank in Lake Thekkady, Periyar National Park, Kerala, India. When the boat capsized, 45 tourists died, most of them from Delhi and Kolkata. A total of 82 people were on the boat. The boat's helmsman, Victor Samuel, and another crew member were arrested on 5 October. It is the deadliest maritime accident reported in Kerala.

The Westdene dam disaster was a bus accident that took place in Westdene, near Johannesburg, South Africa, on 27 March 1985. The driver of the bus was Coloured and the passengers were all white, which caused some contention. Of the 72 occupants, 42 drowned inside the submerged bus and two were declared deceased shortly after being taken to a nearby hospital. The remaining 30, including the bus driver, were rescued.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Christmas Island boat disaster</span> 2010 sinking of an Indonesian boat carrying asylum seekers off Christmas Island, Australia

On 15 December 2010, an Indonesian fishing boat carrying 89 asylum seekers and 3 crew members sank after being dashed against the rocks near Rocky Point, Christmas Island, an external Australian territory. 50 people died and 42 were rescued. The incident was the worst civilian maritime disaster in Australia in more than a century.

<i>Bulgaria</i> (ship) Russian cruise ship

Bulgaria was a class 785/OL800 Russian river cruise ship which operated in the Volga-Don basin. On 10 July 2011, Bulgaria sank in the Kuybyshev Reservoir of the Volga River near Syukeyevo, Kamsko-Ustyinsky District, Tatarstan, Russia, with 201 passengers and crew aboard when sailing from the town of Bolgar to the regional capital, Kazan. The catastrophe led to 122 confirmed deaths.

2014 Andaman boat disaster was an incident which occurred on 26 January 2014, when a tourist boat capsized near Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, killing 22 people. The boat "Aqua Marine" was carrying 45 tourists from Tamil Nadu and Mumbai.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table Rock Lake duck boat accident</span> Duck boat accident

On the evening of July 19, 2018, a duck boat operated by Ride the Ducks sank on Table Rock Lake in the Ozarks near Branson, Missouri, in the United States. The amphibious vehicle sank with 31 people on board, leaving 17 dead, during high winds associated with nearby severe thunderstorms as part of a significant derecho and tornado outbreak.

On 30 November 2021, a severely overloaded boat carrying more than 50 people, mostly children aged between 8 and 15, capsized on the Watari Dam in Kano State, Nigeria. At least 29 are confirmed dead and 13 more are missing.

The Tanur boat accident occurred on 7 May 2023 evening, when the recreational boat Atlantic capsized in Tanur Beach in Tanur, Malappuram, Kerala, India. The incident, on a boat carrying 37 people, caused 22 deaths and 10 injuries, including 11 children.

The Kumarakom boat accident occurred on 27 July 2002 morning, when a passenger boat sank, that was travelling from Muhamma in Alappuzha to Kumarakom in Kottayam, Kerala, India. The accident happened nearly one kilometer before reaching the Kumarakom jetty. 29 people, including a nine-month-old baby and 15 women died in the accident.

References

  1. Thomas, Jaisy (8 May 2023). "പല്ലന, കുമരകം, തട്ടേക്കാട്, തേക്കടി...ഇപ്പോള്‍ താനൂരും; കേരളത്തെ കണ്ണീര്‍ത്തീരമാക്കിയ ദുരന്തങ്ങള്‍". Media One. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  2. "Thattekad boat tragedy: HC sets aside driver's five-year sentence - The New Indian Express". www.newindianexpress.com. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  3. ഡെസ്ക്, വെബ്. "കുമരകം മുതൽ താനൂർ വരെ; 2000ത്തിന് ശേഷം കേരളത്തില്‍ ബോട്ടപകടങ്ങളിൽ മരിച്ചത് 131 പേർ". The Fourth (in Malayalam). Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  4. mtp (27 February 2021). "തട്ടേക്കാട് ബോട്ടപകടത്തില്‍ ബോട്ടുടമയുടെ ശിക്ഷ രണ്ട് വര്‍ഷമാക്കി Boat owner sentenced to two years in Thattekkad boat accident". മലയാളം വാർത്ത | Malayalam Breaking News | Latest Gulf News | Qatar News | Kerala News | Gulf Malayaly. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  5. "നാടിനെ കണ്ണീരിലാഴ്ത്തിയ തട്ടേക്കാട് ബോട്ട് അപകടം നടന്നിട്ട് നാളെ 14 വർഷം". Janayugom Online. 19 February 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  6. Daily, Keralakaumudi. "Thattekkad boat tragedy: High Court reduces imprisonment of boat owner from five years to two years". Keralakaumudi Daily. Retrieved 8 May 2023.