Explosion inside INS Ranvir happened during air-conditioning service?
The servicing of the air-conditioning equipment was being carried out as the ship was to head out in a few days towards its home base in Visakhapatnam.
An explosion in the air-conditioning compressor may have caused the death of three Indian Navy personnel onboard INS Ranvir at Mumbai naval dockyard on Tuesday, sources have told Asianet Newsable. Those who lost their lives in the accident are Master Chief Petty Officers Krishna Kumar, Surinder Kumar and AK Singh.
The servicing of the air-conditioning equipment was being carried out as the ship was to head out in a few days towards its home base in Visakhapatnam. The Colaba police station of Mumbai Police has registered an accidental death report as per established procedures. The ADR is registered when there is no foul play or suspicion in the case.
The three naval personnel, who were killed, were apparently in the immediate vicinity of the explosion site. A total of 11 naval personnel are injured and undergoing treatment at INHS Asvini in Mumbai. The condition of two of the injured is said to be serious, sources in the Navy said, adding that the others have minor injuries.
In a statement, the Indian Navy had said on Tuesday that the unfortunate incident was caused due to an explosion in an internal compartment of the destroyer. It also stated that no major material damage has been reported. The warship, INS Ranvir was on cross coast operational deployment from the Eastern Naval Command since November 2021 and was due to return to base port shortly. The force has constituted a Board of inquiry to ascertain the cause of the accident.
INS Ranvir, the fourth of the five Rajput-class destroyers, was inducted into the Indian Navy in 1986 and has been participated in several bilateral and multinational maritime exercises. It was also deployed on several missions across the globe, including HADR missions. Last year in October, a case of fire and flooding was reported on its another destroyer INS Ranvijay in Visakhapatnam. Four sailors had suffered injuries.
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