11 dead in Vizag crane crash at Hindustan Shipyard; Defence Minister orders probe

A 70-tonne crane toppled over and crushed 11 to death in Hindustan Shipyard Limited (NSL) in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that a departmental inquiry committee has been instituted to look into the cause behind the accident. He tweeted: “Extremely anguished by the loss of lives due to an accident at HSL facility in Visakhapatnam (AP)”.

The HSL management also announced a Rs 50 lakh compensation for the kin of the deceased and a job for a member from each family. Four of the 11 people were permanent employees, while the remaining had been working on a contractual basis. The announcement came after Minister Avanthi Srinivas held talks with trade unions and HSL management. Srinivas spoke with the media after visiting the location, saying, «It’s an unfortunate incident. On the advice of Andhra CM Jagan Mohan Reddy I negotiated with the management of the Hindustan Shipyard. They have agreed to give proper compensation and jobs to the bereaved families.

HSL CMD L V Sarat Babu said, «The financial condition of the company is not good. Despite the trouble, we announced this huge compensation on humanitarian grounds. It is the first accident at the Hindustan Shipyard. The crane had toppled while on a trial run.»

Related to the accident, another mishap took place when the family members of one of the deceased were on their way to Visakhapatnam to have a last look at their kin. Their car hit a lorry in the Sirkakulam district and three people were killed.