‘Help me’: Derry woman’s last video call before MP boat tragedy kills three

New Delhi: What was supposed to be a trip to celebrate housewarming turned into a devastating tragedy when three members of a Delhi family died in a cruise ship accident in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. Video of one of the dead has surfaced, in which the woman makes a video call to her brother, showing him the scenery moments before the panic and hearing her cry “help me…save me” before the call suddenly hangs up.The Messi family from Delhi Cantonment had traveled to Jabalpur earlier this week to attend a housewarming ceremony of relatives. After Tuesday’s event, they decided to spend an extra day sightseeing before heading home.A family boarded a boat operated by the Madhya Pradesh tourism department at Balji Dam on the Narmada river on Thursday evening. The vessel, carrying about 40 to 43 passengers, encountered a sudden storm, with strong winds and huge waves hitting the reservoir, causing it to lose balance and capsize.The dead include 39-year-old Marina, her four-year-old son Trishan and her 62-year-old mother Madhur Masi. Marina’s husband Pradeep, their 14-year-old daughter Siya and her 65-year-old father Julius Massey survived the incident.Recalling the moments before the tragedy, Marina’s brother Kuldeep Mohan said the family had been in regular contact and expected to return to Delhi soon.“My mother, father, sister, her children and brother-in-law went to Jabalpur for a housewarming ceremony. They were supposed to return to Delhi on Thursday and arrive on Friday. Instead, they went sightseeing and then this happened,” he told PTI.He described how the situation suddenly happened while Marina was on a video call with family members at home.“My sister was on a video call with us, showing us the scenery and the water. Then all of a sudden everything changed. She kept crying, ‘Help me…save me…’ and the phone went dead,” he said.According to him, the family was on the upper deck when the weather deteriorated rapidly.“The waves started to rise, the cruise ship lost its balance, everyone on the first floor rushed downstairs, the ship rocked hard and took on water. Then, my brother-in-law Pradeep hurriedly started looking for life jackets,” he said.As panic spread among the passengers, Pradeep started distributing life jackets, Kuldeep added.“Some people were wearing jackets and some jumped into the water out of fear. Those who jumped into the water were rescued by local villagers using ropes and rescue equipment. Among those rescued was my father,” he said.He said Pradeep knew how to swim and he managed to save himself and his teenage daughter. However, when he tried to find the others, they had disappeared.“While my brother-in-law searched for my sister, her children and my mother, they had disappeared under the boat,” he said.Relatives claimed there was negligence on the part of the boat operators and authorities, who failed to issue warnings despite weather warnings.“A yellow alert has been issued but no one informed them. If they told people the weather was dangerous and the ship was unnavigable, no one would board the ship,” Mohan said.He also expressed concern about the lack of permanent rescue systems at tourist attractions.“It’s only 150 to 200 meters away from the coast, but the waves are too big and people are constantly being pushed away. If it is a tourist resort, there should be a standing rescue team. There will be no warning for emergencies,” he said.Another relative, Sangeeta Kori, claimed that the boat was overloaded and warnings from locals were ignored.“It was sheer negligence. They turned it into a source of income without any regard for safety. People in the village were shouting to indicate which way he should steer the boat. If he had steered the boat this way, they might have been saved. But he kept turning the boat the other way and it capsized,” she said.Meanwhile, officials said the death toll from the accident had risen to nine, with several others missing. So far, about 28 people have been rescued and the search operation continues.Preliminary findings indicate that wind speeds soared to 60-70 km/h around Thursday night, causing turbulence and destabilizing the vessel. Survivors also claimed that life jackets were handed out only after the boat started sinking, leaving passengers with little time to react.The state government has ordered an investigation into the incident. A compensation of Rs 4 lakh each has been announced to the family members of the deceased.