Three dead, 11 injured in explosion on board destroyer INS Ranvir

The Navy conveyed its condolences to the families of those killed in a statement issued on Wednesday. “Adm R Hari Kumar, CNS and all personnel of Indian Navy extend heartfelt condolences to the families of Krishan Kumar MCPO I, Surinder Kumar MCPO II & AK Singh MCPO II, who succumbed to injuries caused by the unfortunate incident onboard INS Ranvir on 18 Jan 22. We fully stand by with the families in this difficult time,” it said.

Adm R Hari Kumar #CNS & all personnel of #IndianNavy extend heartfelt condolences to the families of Krishan Kumar MCPO I, Surinder Kumar MCPO II & AK Singh MCPO II, who succumbed to injuries in the unfortunate incident onboard INS Ranvir.
We stand by you in this difficult times. pic.twitter.com/yDp1rjTGoq

— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) January 19, 2022

The Navy has on Tuesday said that “no major material damage has been reported” and a board of inquiry has been instituted into the incident. INS Ranvir, among the oldest warships in the Navy, is a Soviet-era destroyer and was commissioned in April 1986.

The fourth destroyer of the Rajput class, it is the first of the Ranvir class. The other Ranvir class destroyer is INS Ranvijay.

In a statement, the Navy said: “In an unfortunate incident today at Naval Dockyard Mumbai, three naval personnel succumbed to injuries caused by an explosion in an internal compartment on board INS Ranvir.”

The ship’s crew, it said, responded immediately and the situation was quickly brought under control. “No major material damage has been reported,” it said.

The explosion took place between 4.30 and 5 pm while the ship was docked.

The Navy said INS Ranvir was “on cross coast operational deployment from the Eastern Naval Command” since November 2021 and was due to return to base port shortly.

Sources said the three personnel who died were all senior sailors but not officers. The Navy is in the process of reaching out to the families of the dead, and will release their names and details thereafter.

The explosion, sources said, had nothing to do with ammunition or weapons.

A senior officer said the explosion took place in an AC compartment and the three who died were in a compartment above it.

This is the first major incident since June 2019 when a worker died in a fire on board the then under-construction Visakhapatnam destroyer at Mazagon dockyard.