Lokesh Karkera, 36, looked tired lying in hospital bed. “I did not have a proper sleep last night because of pain,” he said.
Lokesh and his younger brother Shashidhar Karkera (33) are among the five who were injured after their boat was rocked by a massive wave near the estuary on Tuesday. While Lokesh had patella (knee cap) fracture, his brother suffered serious tibia fracture. Both were operated upon at the City Hospital on Tuesday night.
About 30 fishermen were on the purse-seine boat. About 100 metres from the estuary around 7 a.m., the boat encountered a huge wave. The boat went up as high as 20 feet and came down. While Shashidhar and Lokesh suffered fractures, 60-year-old Ram Karkera had injury on the head. Mohan (33) split his chin and Naveen had minor injury.
Wanting to reach the shore, the fishermen turned the boat towards the New Mangalore Port Trust and wanted to take the injured to the hospital. The fishermen said they were stopped by Central Industrial Security Force personnel, who were patrolling NMPT waters. “They refused to permit us into the port even when we showed our identity and also boat number,” Mr. Mendon said. NMPT Traffic Manager S. Gopalakrishna, however, refuted the charge and said: “Our chairman directed the CISF personnel to permit the boat carrying the injured fishermen into the port. We have allowed such passage earlier too.”
