Page 27 - Disaster Accident

Mining officer tells PSPCL to take steps to control fire in

The Pakur District Mining officer Thursday informed the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited to take immediate steps to control fire that has been spotted in the seam of Pachuwada central coal bloc at Amrapada in the district. The bloc has been closed from April 1, 2015 following an order of the Supreme Court on allegations of irregularities in coal bloc allocations during the previous UPA government. "Today, I informed the officials of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited, the holder of patta of the bloc, and also sent a letter to them asking to take necessary steps in this regard," Pakur district Mining Officer Utam Kumar Biswas said here. He, however, said there was no need for panic as fire in the coal seam is a general phenomenon. According to locals of Pakur district, which is experiencing scorching heat conditions, fire in the coal seam was spotted five/six weeks ago. Fire was also seen in 2015 and 2016 and was brought under control, they said. The officer

Girl student dies after 'fall' from school building

: A 14-year-old girl student died Thursday after falling off the fourth floor of her private school here, sparking off a stir by parents and students blaming it on alleged lack of safety measures. Police said investigations were on to find out whether it was a case of suicide or accident. The student died while being shifted to a nearby hospital withmultiple injuries, they said. Her father, in a complaint to the police, suspected she might have died due to negligence of safety by the school management. The education department ordered closure of the school till further orders in the wake of the agitation by parents and students organisation.

Gujarat: Pregnant woman rescued by Coast Guard, parents plan to name baby 'Vayu'

Amid gusty winds and heavy rains lashing the coast of Gujarat due to cyclone Vayu on Thursday, Indian Coast Guard in Gujarat rescued a pregnant woman on a Gemini boat from Shiyalbet island.The woman later gave birth to a baby boy in a hospital. Coast Guard officials said that the parents are planning to name the child 'Vayu' after the cyclone.As the severe cyclonic storm "Vayu" raged towards Shiyalbet Island in Gujarat, a team of Coast Guard personnel rescued a pregnant lady in need of a pre-term delivery from the island and safely handed her over to a hospital.Shiyalbet Island is a small village in the Arabian Sea off the Gujarat coast.The disaster management force safely took her to the hospital in Jafarabad city on a boat. Cyclone Vayu that was due to make landfall between Porbandar and Veraval today, changed course to head further into the sea.

All 13 air warriors on board dead in AN-32 crash: IAF

All 13 air-warriors on board an AN-32 transport aircraft that crashed in a heavily forested mountainous area in Arunachal Pradesh 10 days back were killed, the Indian Air Force said Thursday. Official sources said the "black box" of the aircraft has been recovered from the crash site and it will help the investigators reconstruct the events leading to the crash. The IAF has already ordered a court of inquiry into the accident, one of the worst involving a military aircraft in recent years. The Russian-origin aircraft went missing on the afternoon of June 3, around 33 minutes after taking off from Jorhat in Assam for Menchuka in Arunachal Pradesh. After eight days of a massive search operation, the wreckage of the plane was spotted by an IAF chopper on Tuesday at a height of 12,000 ft near Gatte village on the border of Siang and Shi-Yomi districts. "On 13 Jun 19, eight members of the rescue team reached the crash site in search of the survivors. Unfortunately no air-warrior survived ..

Gunmen kill 40 in central Nigeria: Emergency service

At least 40 people have died and dozens were injured in raids by armed bandits in eight remote Nigerian villages, the emergency services said on Thursday. Groups of gunmen riding motorcycles stormed into the farming and herding villages in Shiroro district of central Niger state on Sunday, firing indiscriminately and stealing cattle. "For now, 40 bodies have been recovered," Niger State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) spokesman Ibrahim Audu Hussein told AFP. "Search and rescue teams are still recovering bodies in the bush and the final toll will be announced later," he said. Dozens of people were injured in the raids which forced over 2,000 villagers out of their homes, he added. Hussein said the bandits took away hundreds of herds of cattle from the villages. The villages include Kwaki, Ajatayi, Gwassa, Barden Dawaki, Alewa and Sarkin Pawa. News of the attacks was slow to emerge due to the "difficult terrain" and poor telecommunication in the area, said Salihu Garba, another ...

China calls sinking of Philippines boat an 'ordinary maritime accident'

The sinking of a Filipino fishing boat by a suspected Chinese trawler in disputed waters was described by Beijing Thursday as an ordinary maritime accident, after Manila accused the alleged Chinese crew of cowardice for fleeing the scene. The Philippine defence department said Wednesday a suspected Chinese boat had collided with a Filipino craft anchored near Reed Bank in the South China Sea, causing it to sink and leaving 22 crewmen to their fate. Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's office said the abandonment of the Filipino crew was "barbaric", while Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana condemned the Chinese trawler's "cowardly action". Neither Beijing nor Manila have officially confirmed the boat involved in the hit-and-run incident was Chinese-registered. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang on Thursday called the incident "an ordinary maritime traffic accident", and said China was still investigating. He added, however: "If the relevant reports are true, regardless ..

Cyclone Vayu spares Gujarat, changes course towards Oman

Sparing Gujarat after changing course, Cyclone Vayu Thursday began moving away from the state coast towards Oman, even as the danger of heavy winds and rain in coastal areas continued, officials said here. Though the "eye of the storm" is away from land, the cyclone's outer periphery would leave its impact on the coast, officials said. State authorities have already evacuated three lakh people from low-lying areas near the coast to safer places. Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said, "According to IMD bulletin, Cyclone Vayu, which was going to hit Gujarat, has moved towards Oman. But the administration will continue to be on high alert for the next 24 hours." Schools in coastal districts of Saurashtra and Kutch will remain closed Friday as a precaution, the chief minister said. Rupani, who reviewed the situation late Thursday evening, said the cyclone "no longer poses any danger" but the administration in the coastal region will remain on alert. "The IMD said the ...

Man drowns near Bandra Bandstand

A 29-year-old man drowned in the sea here Thursday afternoon, a fire brigade official said. Mitun Kumar Kariyar was spotted drowning near Bandra Bandstand, a popular tourist haunt in the western suburbs. A fire brigade team rescued him and brought him out to the shore but he was declared dead before admission at a hospital, the official added. Incidents of people getting swept away by waves while standing on the rocks which jut into the sea at Bandra Bandstand have been reported many times in the past.

Arunachal CM condoles death of people on board AN-32 plane

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu Thursday offered his condolences to the bereaved family members of the 13 people on board the AN-32 aircraft which crashed in the state on June 3. In his condolence message, Khandu said, "I am shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of lives of our brave Air warriors who attained martyrdom in the line of their duties." "While I express my solidarity to the Indian Air Force for loss of their men and officers, I call them true patriot as they laid their lives for the cause of our motherland.... In this hour of grief, I express my heartfelt and sincere condolences to the bereaved family members," he said. After a team of rescuers searched the wreckage of the plane in a heavily forested mountainous terrain earlier on Thursday, the Indian Air Force said there were no survivors from the crash of the aircraft. The Russian-origin AN-32 aircraft was going from Jorhat in Assam to Menchuka advanced landing ground near the border .

Naveen, Pradhan condole death of people on board AN-32 plane

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Thursday expressed grief over the death of 13 Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel, who were onboard the AN-32 aircraft that crashed in Arunachal Pradesh on June 3. One of the 13 victims, Flight Lieutenant Sunit Mohanty, hailed from Odisha's Ganjam district. He was the co- pilot of the plane that crashed close to Cina border. "Deeply saddened by the news of our air warriors who lost their lives in #An32 crash including the brave Flight Lieutenant Sunit Mohanty from #Odisha. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family members and pray for the departed souls to rest in peace," Patnaik said. Sunit, son of former IAF employee Surendranath Mohanty of Baliapalli village in Ganjam district, had joined the force in 2012. Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan also expressed his condolence over the demise of the IAF personnel. "I pay my humble tributes to all the brave air- warriors who lost their lives in the unfortunate crash.... Pray to the ...

Amarinder Singh, Khattar express grief over death of 13 people onboard AN-32 aircraft

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and his counterpart in Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar expressed grief over the death of all 13 people onboard the AN-32 aircraft which crashed in Arunachal Pradesh. After a team of rescuers searched the wreckage of the plane in a heavily forested mountainous terrain, the Air Force Thursday said that everyone onboard the aircraft was dead. "Extremely unfortunate and disheartening. I pay my tribute to all 13 air warriors whom we lost in the AN-32 crash. My deepest condolences to all family members of our bravehearts," Singh tweeted. Khattar also expressed deep grief at the loss of lives in the incident and said he prayed for God to grant strength to the kin of the deceased. Three Air Force personnel from Haryana and Punjab were killed in the crash. Flight Lieutenants Mohit Garg and Ashish Tanwar hailed from Samana in Punjab's Patiala district and Deeghot village in Haryana's Palwal district, respectively. Airman Pankaj Sangwan was from Kohla village in

Two tankers catch fire after suspected Gulf of Oman attacks

Suspected attacks left two tankers in flames in the waters of the Gulf of Oman Thursday, sending world oil prices soaring as Iran helped rescue stricken crew members. The mystery incident, the second involving shipping in the strategic sea lane in only a few weeks, came amid spiralling tensions between Tehran and Washington, which has pointed the finger at Iran over earlier tanker attacks in May. The Norwegian Maritime Authority said three explosions were Thursday reported on board the Norwegian-owned tanker Front Altair after it was "attacked" along with the Singapore-owned ship Kokuka Courageous. Iran said its navy had rescued 44 crew members after the two vessels, which were carrying highly inflammable material, caught fire. TV images showed huge, thick plumes of smoke and fire billowing from one of the tankers as it lay out to sea. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif spoke of "reported attacks" as Japan's prime minister held talks in Tehran. "Suspicious doesn't begin to .

Slabs of commercial building collapse; none hurt

Slabs of top two floors of a four- storey commercial building collapsed near here Thursday afternoon, but no casualty was reported, said Fire Brigade officials. The slabs of the building, located near the Dombivili railway station, caved in at around 1.30 pm, said Namdeo Chowdhari, Sub-Officer (Fire Brigade), Kalyan Dombivili Municipal Corporation (KDMC). No one was injured in the mishap, he said. He said the four-storey structure housed about a dozen shops on the ground floor, while the first floor was occupied by a restaurant. The second floor housed a marriage hall, while the third and fourth floors were empty, Chowdhari said. A civic official said a structural audit of the building was underway after a decision will be taken on pulling down the third and fourth floors.

Air India Express Kochi-Mumbai flight suffers bird hit

A Mumbai-bound Air India Express fight carrying 185 passengers on board was forced to return to the airport here Thursday due to a bird hit, an airline official said. All the passengers escaped unhurt in the incident which took place around 1.45 pm and an alternative plane has been put in service to fly the stranded passengers to their destination, he said. "Air India Express flight IX-435, operating on Kochi- Mumbai route experienced bird hit during take off. It departed at 1.25 pm from Kochi for Mumbai and landed back at 2 pm," the official said. All the 185 passengers on board are safe, he said. A team of Air India engineers along with some equipment has flown from Mumbai to inspect the aircraft and make it airworthy, he said. Another aircraft is scheduled to carry the passengers to Mumbai around 7 pm, he added.

AN-32 crash: Bodies of all 13 IAF personnel, black box retrieved

A 15-member rescue team reached the crash site today morning. "The IAF is sad to inform that there are no survivors from the crash of AN-32," the Indian Air Force said in a tweet.IAF officials said the team of mountaineers and Special Forces managed to recover the bodies of the 13 personnel from the densely forested mountainside where the plane went down.The black box of the aircraft, which includes the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder, has also been retrieved. An analysis of the black box data will allow the Air Force to establish the cause behind the crash, officials said.A senior Air Marshal from the Eastern Air Command is monitoring the operations from the base camp."Helicopters would be used to ferry the bodies from the area," the officials said.The 13 IAF personnel have been identified as Wing Commander GM Charles, Sqn Ldr H Vinod, Flt Lt R Thapa, Flt Lt A Tanwar, Flt Lt S Mohanty, Flt Lt MK Garg, Warrant Officer KK Mishra, Sergeant Anoop Kumar, Corporal ...

Centre to provide technical support to cyclone hit Odisha

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Thursday assured the Odisha government that the Centre will provide technical support for restoration of power, telecom and housing sectors to the state which was ravaged by the cyclone Fani last month, a senior official said here. A team of the NDMA that visited the cyclone hit areas of the state lauded its efforts in tackling the cyclone saying Odisha's preparedness and response to the cyclone Fani from the state to the community level is "world class". The cyclone that made landfall at a wind speed of about 200 kmph near Puri on May 3 battered 14 districts, killed 64 people and caused a total loss of Rs 9,336.26 crore, the state government said recently. NDMA team leader Kamal Kishore said, "The state has properly utilized the cyclone shelters built under National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Programme to house the affected people. The state also engaged 200 Aapada Mitra volunteers in each district affected by the ...

Def Minister Singh reviews Navy's preparation to deal with cyclone Vayu

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday reviewed the Navy's preparedness along the Maharashtra and Gujarat coast in view of cyclone Vayu, officials said. Senior Navy officials briefed Singh at a meeting in naval headquarters here during which he was apprised about various measures being taken by the force to deal with possible scenarios, they said. He was briefed about the ability and readiness of various assets of Western Naval Command (HQWNC) which were kept ready for deployment to the affected areas in case of requirement. "The Western Naval Command, Mumbai is closely monitoring the developing situation. Indian Navy ships Chennai, Gomati and Deepak at Mumbai have embarked with humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and are ready to be deployed at short notice," the Navy said. In addition, 5,000 litres of drinking water is also being kept on board naval ships. Officials said seven naval aircraft and three helicopters are kept on standby for deployment. "Two diving and ...

Coast Guard helicopter rescues armyman off Goa beach

A 26-year-old armyman was rescued by the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) Thursday after he was swept into the sea here. The Pune-based Army personnel (name not disclosed), who was holidaying in Goa, slipped from the rocks and fell into the choppy waters near Cabo da Rama Fort in South Goa district. A lifeguard of Drishti Lifesaving Services, which guards the state's beaches, tried to reach him but the high waves made it impossible, said its spokesperson. Another lifeguard threw a rescue tube for the man to cling onto and the ICG control room was alerted. A helicopter was rushed to the spot and a team led by the Coast Guard's air crew driver Himmat Singh rescued him. His condition was said to be stable. Beach lifeguards, meanwhile, rescued three persons in the coastal state since Wednesday. Two tourists were rescued off the beach in Calangute in North Goa district, while another man was rescued from Colva creek in South Goa.

Coast Guard rescues man from drowning on Goa beach

In a swift rescue operation Coast Guard helicopter rescued a drowning person two nautical miles north of Cabo de Rama beach here on Thursday afternoon.The victim, 20-year-old, who was swept away by the ebbing waves somehow managed to keep himself afloat, in the inclement weather.After receiving information, Coast Guard helicopter on routine patrol was diverted for his search and rescue operation. The rescue team winched down the rescue hoist to airlift the survivor from the sea.The person was airlifted to the Coast Guard Air enclave where a medical team with critical care van was kept ready to evacuate the survivor to the INHS Jeevanti hospital.The person is presently stable.

Mumbai: Man dies after drowning at Bandra Bandstand

A man died after drowning in the sea at Bandra Bandstand here on Thursday, according to the Mumbai Fire Brigade department (MFB).Mitunkumar Bramhaprasad Kariyar, 29, was rescued by the Mumbai Fire Brigade department and sent to K B Bhabha Hospital in Bandra. However he was declared bought dead.Dr. Dinesh, Chief Medical Officer, K B Bhabha Hospital said: "The victim Mitunkumar was bought dead after the MFB rescued him.