Mumbai: Six labourers died when a huge fire engulfed a ship being broken at the Alang Ship Breaking Yard in Bhavnagar on Tuesday. While a forensic science laboratory team has begun investigation to find the cause of fire, the local police have also initiated an inquiry into the matter and registered a case of accidental death.
According to the Bhavnagar police, the fire was reported from MSC Jessica, a box ship beached at plot number 24 at Alang.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the fire started in the afternoon from the engine room located on the first floor of the vessel. The labourers were engaged in breaking work at the upper level then.
"The fire was so huge that the entire vessel was gutted," said the police.
The Alang fire brigade said that it took over two hours to extinguish the fire and they could only recover the bodies from the vessel. "The cause of fire is still subject to investigation," said a fire brigade official. [05/08/09]
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