A fall to escape death turns fatal
Kolkata: A crane operator at the Haldia Port died after he reportedly jumped off from his cabin to escape a fire that broke out in the crane on Saturday.
It is alleged that there were no trained Disaster Management Group (DMG) personnel to deal with such kind of situations at the port.
According to sources, on Saturday, around 8:30 am, a ship at the Haldia port was being loaded with coal. A mobile harbour crane was being used for the job. While doing so, somehow fire broke out in the crane. Soon, the fire started spreading on the berth number 13 where the ship was anchored. The fire brigade and port authorities were immediately informed. In the beginning, five fire tenders were pressed into action. But, as the intensity of the fire was high and the flames started spreading, five more fire tenders were sent later.
After the crane caught fire, the operator, Dravin Rai, (29) started shouting for help. He was desperately asking for help as he was stuck in the crane. To save him, some people on the ground arranged a net and spread it so that Rai could jump on it. They asked Rai to jump from the crane but as they were not trained for such situations and holding net, rescuers held the net close to the ground.
When they asked Rai to jump on the net, he jumped to save himself from the fire. But the people who volunteered to help him could not hold the net tightly when he fell on it. Despite Rai jumped on the net, he hit the ground hard. As a result, he sustained serious injuries on his head and suffered multiple fractures on his body. Rai was immediately rushed to a hospital in Haldia. Later, he was further referred to a hospital in Kolkata. Though Rai was shifted quickly, but he succumbed to his injuries on Saturday night at the hospital in Kolkata.
It is alleged that despite repeated requests port authorities have not taken any steps to look into the security of the workers at the Haldia Port. Employees of Haldia Port have sought concrete steps for proper safety and security of the staff.
