VISAKHAPATNAM: In a tragic incident, a child drowned while seven others are feared missing after two boats they were travelling capsized in Sileru river along Andhra-Odisha border in Vizag Agency area on Monday night.

As per reports, the incident took place near Gunta Vada close to the Sileru dam which is 140 kilometres from Visakhapatnam. There were 11 people aboard the two boats at the time of the accident. All of them were from Konduguda village in Malkangiri district of Odisha. They had migrated to Telangana to work in a brick kiln on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Due to the second COVID pandemic, 35 workers decided to go back to their village. Eleven of them reached the village in the first batch of boats that sailed across the Sileru Reservoir earlier.

The accident occurred during the second trip when five boats had set sail for Odisha in the same route. As per reports one of the boats capsized in the river a few minutes after sailing, when people on the first boat tried to save their lives by climbing onto the second boat which also capsized. Three of the 11 members escaped safely while eight of them were missing in the accident. The body of a child was found later during the search operations.

Paderu YSRCP MLA Kottagulli Bhagyalakshmi spoke to the AP GENCO officials over the phone and enquired about the incident. MLA Bhagyalakshmi asked the District Collector, Integrated Tribal Development Agency Project Officer and local officials to provide relief measures for those who survived and ensure their safety. Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha officials have intensified search operations for the missing persons, who are feared to have drowned.

Further details are awaited...