Supaul/Patna: A boat accident in Supaul district’s Benga Mirchaiya River has claimed the lives of five women from the same family, after a grass-laden vessel carrying 14 passengers capsized on September 23.
The tragedy unfolded in Belapatti village of Gudiya Panchayat under Triveniganj police station. Twelve women and two boatmen were aboard when the vessel lost balance midstream. Villagers rescued seven women that evening, but one later died in hospital. Four others drowned and went missing.
For nearly two days, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) scoured the river, deploying drone surveillance from its Bihta unit. On Thursday morning, after 41 hours, divers recovered the bodies of the four missing women: Kajal Devi (25), Savitri Devi (45), Manjula Devi (30), and Mamta Devi (30). All were related and residents of Chakla village. Kajal’s mother, Sanjan Devi, had already died in the accident, bringing the family’s toll to five.
“The Patna NDRF team worked through Wednesday with aerial support, but the missing could not be traced. The bodies were finally recovered Thursday morning and sent for post-mortem,” said Abhishek Kumar, SDM of Triveniganj.
The accident has cast a pall of grief across the villages, where hundreds gathered at the riverbank as the bodies were brought ashore.
