14 injured as Indian city ferry service suffers second mishap in four days

Fourteen people were injured after a commuter ferry struck a pontoon in the city of Kochi in southern India's Kerala state on Tuesday, June 3.

The Water Metro ferry operated by Kochi Metro Rail (KMRL) was approaching the jetty at Kochi's High Court terminal in preparation for offloading passengers when it accidentally hit a nearby pontoon at around 18:10 local time on Tuesday.

KMRL said that some of the ferry's passengers suffered minor injuries and that an investigation has been launched.

Technical experts from the Cochin University of Science and Technology and Cochin Shipyard, which built the ferry, will assist in the KMRL-led investigation.

The operator said the mishap was caused by a mechanical glitch but did not provide additional details.

Tuesday's pontoon strike occurred just three days after a KMRL Water Metro ferry lost control and accidentally hit a berthed Ro-Ro vessel at Kochi's Vypin Jetty on Saturday, May 31.

In the earlier incident, the ferry reportedly encountered strong undercurrents as it was manoeuvring to berth. These then caused it to drift backwards by about 20 metres and strike the stationary Ro-Ro vessel.

KMRL has issued a statement assuring that there were no injuries and that neither of the two vessels involved in Saturday's incident suffered any serious damage.