Authorities in India report that a collision occurred between a local fishing vessel and a foreign-flagged cargo ship in the Arabian Sea off the coast of the southern state of Kerala on Wednesday, October 1.
The fishing vessel Prathyasa was just off Fort Kochi when it was struck by the Liberian-registered general cargo ship MSC Silver II at around 17:30 local time on Wednesday.
The 186-metre-long cargo ship ended up striking the smaller fishing vessel's starboard side and tearing through its nets.
The fishing vessel has remained afloat and no injuries have been reported among the crew, several of whom had jumped overboard, but their entire catch of mackerel was reportedly lost.
The Indian fishermen later told local media that they saw the cargo ship approaching their position just as they were hauling nets.
The crew said that they sent out a wireless signal but those on the cargo ship may have apparently misundersood it. As a result, the latter vessel did not reduce speed until the final few seconds before impact and only after the crews on other nearby boats raised their own alarms.
Some of Prathyasa's crew said that their vessel would have been completely crushed by the impact had the cargo ship not decelerated in time.
Local police have begun an investigation into the collision. According to a police official, a formal case will be filed after the facts surrounding the incident have been verified.
Wednesday's collision is the latest maritime incident to occur off Kerala this year.
In late May, the Liberian-flagged container vessel MSC Elsa 3 developed a severe list and eventually sank off Kerala.
The ship's cargo of containers had also included those laden with hazardous materials, and the pollution resulting from the sinking reportedly reached as far as the northern coast of Sri Lanka.