11 killed as massive crane collapses at Indian shipyard

Eleven people have been killed and one person seriously injured after a massive crane collapsed at the Hindustan Shipyard Limited complex in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh of India on Saturday afternoon. The crane collapsed during load-testing trials.

The accident happened when the workers were carrying out an inspection of the crane used to carry equipment for shipbuilding. The massive crane suddenly crumbled and crashed to the ground with a massive sound.

“Around 20 workers were said to be working on the inspection when the crane crashed. Some workers managed to run for safety, some others received injuries and at least 10 workers were crushed under the weight of the crane,” a police official said.

“The injured workers are being shifted to the local hospitals,” the official added.

According to the latest reports, three bodies were retrieved from under the debris of the crane and the remaining were believed to be crushed. The police, with the help of shipyard staff, are involved in the rescue operations.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy has directed Visakhapatnam’s district collector and police commissioner to take immediate action in the incident, news agency ANI cited the chief minister’s office as saying.

Muthamsetty Srinivas Rao, the state minister for tourism who hails from Visakhapatnam, inquired about the accident and asked the district authorities to take up the rescue operations.

The crane was bought by HSL almost a decade ago and its operation was recently outsourced to a private agency.

(Source: Hindustan Times, NDTV)