NEW DELHI, Indian Navy divers on Friday recovered four badly burned bodies of sailors who had been trapped inside a submarine damaged by twin explosions, authorities said. The Navy said it was doubtful that any of the other 14 sailors on board survived.
Narendra Vispute naval spokesman told reporters that the condition of the bodies suggested that all of the 18 sailors aboard died in explosions at home port of Mumbai of the submarine. Three bodies were recovered on Friday morning and a fourth was found in the afternoon, a naval officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.
"The bodies are badly disfigured and unidentifiable due to serious burns," said Vispute, adding that DNA tests would be used to identify the bodies. "However, the Navy continues to search every inch of the submarine until there are no bodies to find.
The 16-year-old diesel engine, Russian-made submarine, INS Sindhurakshak, was rocked by two explosions in the torpedo compartment that sent huge fireballs in the air. The ship was partially submerged at the naval dock in Mumbai, with a visible portion above the waterline.
Reach sailors trapped in the crippled, container full of water was made everything more difficult because the heat from the blast melted some closed doors of hatch. The Navy said that there has been contact from any of the sailors - or a blow to the helmet - since the accident.
A press release from the Navy Friday said that while divers have been working around the clock to get to the compartments of the submarine from the explosions occurred, search efforts were hampered by the "water oily and muddy inside the submarine submerged, resulting in total darkness and zero visibility within the submarine even with underwater lamps of high power".
Twisted metal restricted space inside and it resulted in the search and rescue "very slow and painstaking" efforts, allowing only a diver clear access at the same time, added the statement.
The same submarine was hit by an explosion in 2010 that killed a sailor and wounded two others. The Navy said that the accident was caused by a faulty valve battery that leaked hydrogen, causing an explosion in the compartment of the ship. There was no information on what caused the explosions this week.
The submarine recently returned from Russia after a 2 1/2 years, overhaul and update service and had been certified for use by the Indian Navy.
Russian arsenals Zvyozdochka said that the explosions were related to their repair work.
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