A major fire broke out on board a fishing boat which was anchored at the shoreline of Chowk jetty in the coastal area of Uttan near Bhayandar during the wee hours on Friday.
No casualties reported, boats damaged
Fortunately, no casualties were reported as none of the fishermen or khalasis (helpers) were on the boat when the incident occurred. However, the cold-room, engine, wireless sets, batteries, fishing nets and other equipment were damaged beyond repair in the devastating fire. According to officials attached to Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation’s chief fire officer- Prakash Borade, the fire was reported on-board John Paul owned by Bonny Mumbaikar. The loss of property is pegged at more than ₹ 25 lakh. Even as the exact cause is yet to be ascertained, an electric short circuit in the diesel-powered mechanism is suspected to have triggered the fire. Seeking adequate compensation from the government for the loss, one of the fishermen-Andrew Patil said, “Our boat was loaded and ready for fishing voyage on Friday evening. However, the fire has reduced almost everything to ashes. 20 families were dependent on this boat which will take at least two months for repair and replacement work. How will we survive? What land is to farmers, sea is the only means of survival for fishermen, the government should compensate for losses due to such incidents.”
More about the boat
As per its size and capacity of the boat, around 10 to 20 crew members including the khalasi’s (helpers) and tandel (captain) set out on a fishing voyage of a boat which lasts for a week to ten days with expenses averaging around ₹ 1 lakh. The quaint fishing villages including Uttan, Pali, Dongri, Bhatte Bunder and Chowk are home to more than 750 fishing boats in the region.
