Fishing boat catches fire off Vizag coast

Visakhapatnam: A mechanised fishing boat from Vizag fishing harbour caught fire at mid-sea (around 30 nautical miles off Vizag coast) on Sunday. However, all the five fishermen on-board escaped without any major injuries.
According to reports from the fisherfolk, five fishermen from Vizag fishing harbour went into the sea for fishing on Sunday. The fire on the boat started from the engine and spread across the remaining parts of the boat.All the five on-board fishermen jumped into the sea to save their lives. They were rescued by the members of another fishing boat which was sailing in close proximity.
The fire, that is suspected to have started due to a electric short circuit, gutted the boat. It caused a loss of an estimated 40 lakh, said the fishermen.
The officials from the fisheries, fire and few other departments will examine to boat to ascertain the exact reason for the fire mishap. Meanwhile, leaders of fishermen associations requested AP govt to help the owner of the gutted boat by announcing some compensation.