A day before Independence Day, there has been a huge explosion and fire on board an Indian Navy submarine, INS Sindhurakshak, docked at a high-security military dockyard in Mumbai. About 18 sailors are feared trapped in the gutted vessel. Salvage operations are on.
Navy divers among others, are on the job. It is not clear if some sailors on board the ill-fated submarine jumped to safety before it went down. Some injured personnel have been admitted to the Indian Naval Hospital Ship (INHS) Ashwini nearby but it is not clear if they were from INS Sindhurakshak.
The internal explosion occurred a little after midnight yesterday and the fire it caused was brought under control at about 3 am by 16 fire tenders from the naval dockyard and the Mumbai fire brigade. The 16-year-old vessel has "submerged at her berth with only a portion visible above the surface," a Navy statement said.
It also said that "efforts are on to ascertain the safety of the personnel and salvage of the submarine." There is no word yet on casualties.
Navy Chief Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi has left for Mumbai to take stock of the situation.
The loss of the submarine is a major setback to the Navy's operational preparedness. Only three months ago, India spent about 80 million dollars (480 crore rupees) on upgrading the sub in Russia and it was expected to serve the Navy for at least 10 years more. It had an improved warfare system.
The cause of explosion and extent of damage to the submarine and the dockyard is still not known. All major cities and military installations in the country are on high alert before Independence Day tomorrow.
The explosion, at about ten minutes past midnight was so big that it lit up the South Mumbai skyline in the dark of the night as can be seen on a video shot at a distance and sent to NDTV by a viewer.
The blast was first heard ashore by deputy chief of Mumbai's fire office P.S. Rahandale, who was on leave and attending a private engagement near the Gateway of India promenade. He immediately alerted the fire brigade and other emergency services.
Witnesses said the explosion was very loud and could be heard at quite a distance. Another ship docked close the Sindhurakshak, the INS Sindhuratna, pulled away to safety.
A board of inquiry has been set up to determine the cause of the accident, officials said.
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