Barge collides with fishing boats at Kharewada

The barge which collided with fishing boats anchored at Kharewada.

VASCO 

A barge at sea lost control and crashed into five to six fishing boats anchored at Kharewada on Sunday morning. 

According to information from sources, the barge was operating in the port area and was engaged in loading and unloading of cargo from a foreign ship in the port area.

"The barge experienced some technical snag leading to its drifting towards the Kharewada fishing jetty where many fishing boats were anchored. The barge even collided with a few fishing boats anchored outside the jetty but it was the presence of mind of the barge captain which prevented a major disaster. 

"The barge captain realised that the vessel was drifting and immediately laid anchor that stopped drift of the barge and prevented it from damaging more boats and injuring workers on board the fishing boats. The barge was later towed away from the area with the help of other barges and fortunately, no one was injured. The collision however  resulted in significant damage to the fishing boats, prompting fishermen to demand repairs or compensation from the company," said the source. 

Meanwhile fishing boat owner Simon Pereira demanded that barge operating company officals  visit the site and assess the damage to compensate for the losses accordingly. 

"It is sad that a barge collided with our boats and damaged them. The fishermen have highlighted their ongoing struggles, citing a lack of fishing business, delay in subsidies and various other reasons in the past and due to this many boat owners have stopped the fishing business and kept their boats anchored at sea . My boat was also lying idle and anchored outside the jetty when the drifting barge crashed into it ," Pereira said. 

"Who will be responsible for this and who will pay us for the damages? The company must take an estimate and subsequently compensate us immediately. As of now , we are already struggling with the business and to add salt to injury, now our boats are damaged by this barge which is a cause of concern because there is shortages of wood for repairs and the costs of carpenters have tripled.  The barge company should physically verify the damage caused to the boats and immediately compensate the already struggling fish boat owners," said Pereira.