Kochi: The body of a person who went missing after the water scooter he was riding on sank in the Kochi backwaters was fished out almost 48 hours after the tragedy on Saturday. The coastal police found the body of Bineesh, a 32-year-old graphic designer from Palakkad, near the embarkation jetty at Wellington Island at around 7.15 am. The body was released to the relatives after post mortem and conducting the inquest.
The body had remained untraced following the mishap on Thursday noon despite joint search operations by the Indian Navy, Coastal Police, Fire and Rescue Services, and the Kerala Marine Enforcement Wing. Two others who were with the victim on the scooter were rescued soon after the incident near the Marine Drive.
None of the three had worn life jacket while riding the scooter, owned by the Kerala Inland Navigation Corporation (KINCO) and hired by the Baama Ventures.
Under maintenance, the three-seater scooter was repaired only on Thursday morning and the trio was in the midst of holding a test drive when the unfortunate mishap occured.
