Early fire detection on submarine prevented extensive damage

Mumbai: The Deputy Electrical Officer (DEO) on-board submarine INS Sindhuratna was probably the first one to spot the fire in the warship and acted swiftly to contain its spread and prevent extensive damage.

Lieutenant Commander Kapish Munwal, who was the DEO, and Lieutenant Manoranjan Kumar perished in the fire on-board the Russian-made submarine off Mumbai coast yesterday. Kumar helped Munwal to ensure the safety of other Navy personnel and contain damage to the submarine. "Lt Commander Kapish Munwal may have been the first to spot the fire while Lt Manoranjan Kumar helped Munwal in fire-fighting operations," said a Naval source today. Munwal and Kumar, who were till this morning termed "unaccounted for", were declared dead in the afternoon. A Navy team will now inspect the damage, collect forensic evidence and carry out an assessment, Navy sources said. A Naval Dockyard team will then inspect the vessel to ascertain the extent of damage and the repairs needed. Explaining the incident, the source said a thick layer of smoke was seen emanating from the battery pit, located below the sailors` compartment of the warship. And within minutes the compartment No. 3 got enveloped by a dense smoke. At this time the automatic fire alarm got activated and the fire-fighting and emergency teams got into action and doused the blaze. "A support team too was pressed into service and the submarine was brought to water surface," he said. INS Sindhuratna was at sea on a routine training and workup (inspection) early yesterday when the mishap was reported. The submarine was towed to the harbour this morning.