Survivors, families recount horror of boat tragedy

Auto-rickshaw driver, Shahul Hameed, had a harrowing experience on Sunday while ferrying three motionless children, whom he later discovered were his sister’s, to the nearest hospital after they were rescued from the waters of Thoovaltheeram beach in Malappuram. Hameed had just arrived at the beach when the children were retrieved from the water and rushed into his vehicle. Despite the chaos, he immediately set out for the hospital with the hope of saving them.
On that ill-fated Sunday evening, the tour boat operator’s “last trip” gimmick saw the vessel being packed beyond its capacity. Warnings from bystanders of the boat tilting to one side before it took off on its fatal trip fell on deaf ears.
Hameed rushed to the Thoovaltheeram beach in his three-wheeler on Sunday night on hearing of the tragic accident and rescuers piled into his vehicle some children who included three of his family.
His sister and her three children were among 12 members of his family, hailing from Parappanangadi here, who died in the tragedy that claimed 22 lives, majority of whom were women and children.
“I rushed to the beach in my auto rickshaw on hearing of the accident. When I reached there, rescuers put some children taken out of the water in my auto and I rushed them to the nearest hospital. It was on reaching the hospital that I realised they were my sister’s children. My sister and her three children died in the accident,” he told a news channel.
Five others from his sister’s family and three relatives also died in the tragedy which brings to the fore several violations of the rules governing boat rides by the owner of the vessel and those who were operating it.
A similar tragedy unfolded in Chettipadi village here where four members of a family–a woman and her three children, died in the accident.