In the first accident its kind in the Navy, two sailors were killed and 14 others sustained minor injuries when a warship tilted on its side with its mast crashing on the ground during undocking at the dry dock of the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai on Monday.
The Navy has ordered a Board of Inquiry to ascertain the cause of the mishap. The deceased Navy personnel were identified as NK Rai, CHERA and Ashutosh Pandey, Ag lME. The injured are being treated at the Western Naval Command (WNC) hospital INHS Asvini at Colaba in south Mumbai.
“There has been an incident in the Cruiser Graving Dock, Naval Dockyard, Mumbai involving INS Betwa on Monday. The incident occurred during undocking evolution wherein it is suspected that the dock blocks mechanism has failed,” said Navy spokesperson Captain DK Sharma.
The accident took place at 1.50 pm when INS Betwa, a 4,000 ton guided missile frigate, was ready to go to the sea from the dry dock after repairs and refit. As the dry dock was flooded with water to allow the 126-metre long ship to float, it slipped on the blocks and tipped sideways. The foremast — the tallest projection on the deck and fitted with sophisticated electronic warfare sensors — crashed on the ground alongside. The ship was now tilted at 90 degrees.
“Technical evaluation for making the ship upright was in progress. The extent of damage is being assessed,” a WNC spokesperson said.
Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Sunil lanba rushed to Mumbai from New Delhi to take stock of situation.
Monday’s accident comes a day after the conclusion of the Navy Day celebrations off the Gateway of India in Mumbai. This is the second mishap that the 3,850-tonne Brahmaputra class warship which has an overall length of 126 mts has been involved in.
Earlier in January 2014, INS Betwa had suffered damage in its critical system while it was entering the Mumbai harbour.
The indigenously-built Brahamputra class ship inducted into the Navy in 2004 was undergoing medium refit for the last two years in the dry dock in Mumbai. It was scheduled to go to sea for trials before induction when the mishap took place.
Explaining the procedure of dry dock repairs, officials said the water is drained out once the ship anchors in the dock. The ship is then rested on blocks, allowing the engineers to then repair it. The dock is flooded with water in a controlled manner as to allow the ship to float and return to the sea after repairs. Officials said this is a very complex manoeuvre.
Admitting that this accident was the first ever in the history of the Indian Navy, sources said the naval constructors, who carry out the dry docking and then take the ship to s the sea after repairs, have done this procedure without any mistake so far. Officials also said the constructors last month undertook this procedure while refitting aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, which weighs more than 45,000 tons.
Incidentally, the ill-fated ship named after river Betwa had run aground in January 2014 and collided with an unidentified object leading to a crack in the frigate’s sonar system. The ship was built with the capability to operate at extended ranges, with speeds up to 30 knots. It is one of the key warships of the Western Naval Command. It is armed with Uran anti-ship missiles, Barak 1 surface-to-air missiles and torpedoes besides two Sea King helicopters. INS Betwa had taken part in anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden.