Mumbai boat tragedy: Naval craft driver lost control during engine trials, causing collision with ferry, say police

Mumbai: The driver of the Naval craft, which rammed into a ferry off the Mumbai coast, lost control over the vessel during its engine trials, leading to the fatal crash mid-sea, an injured Navy staffer has told the police, an official said on Friday.

The police, probing the accident, recorded the statement of the injured Navy staffer, who was on the speeding craft, which collided with the ferry 'Neel Kamal' on way to the Elephanta Island, a popular tourist destination, from the Gateway of India on late Wednesday afternoon.

Fourteen persons, including four on the Naval speedboat, were killed in the collision which caused the ferry carrying more than 100 passengers to sink in the Arabian Sea.

A team from the Colaba Police Station, which is investigating the case, recorded the statement of the injured Navy staffer, Karmaveer Yadav, who is undergoing treatment at a hospital, said the official.

According to Yadav, the Naval craft was undergoing engine trials in the sea when the driver lost control, leading the vessel to collide with the ferry packed with passengers, he said.

The police team also inspected the craft, said the official.

Navy chief reviews situation

As the Indian Navy came under severe criticism for conducting engine trials of its speed boat that crashed into a passenger-ferry, Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi, the Chief of Naval Staff, rushed to Mumbai and held a high-level review meeting.

The video of the jetting speedboat, which was captured by a tourist, has gone viral on social media platforms.

Admiral Tripathi visited the spot, held a review meeting and later left for New Delhi.

The CNS met top officials of the Mumbai-headquartered Western Naval Command (WNC).

The Navy on Thursday instituted a 'Board of Inquiry' to probe the collision.

With PTI inputs