The bodies of the last two of nine fishermen lost when their boat capsized during Cyclone Murasu have been recovered on the Andhra Pradesh coast.
All nine are now accounted for. The final two, aged 52 and 57, were found dead on Sunday 8 November after six days of searching. One body went to his family in Nammalwarpet, Purasaiwalkam. The other went to Samiyarpettai in Cuddalore district.
Five of the dead had already come home to Kasimedu (காசிமேடு) on Friday 6 November.
How did the boat end up at sea as Murasu crossed?
The mechanised boat Sri Sengalamman left the Chennai fishing harbour on 29 October with nine crew, the Indian Coast Guard said. After cyclone warnings it sheltered at Nizampatnam in Andhra Pradesh. On the night of 2 November, with Murasu crossing the coast, it put out again for Ramayapatnam harbour, and its engine failed mid-sea. Early on 3 November the stranded men radioed another boat. Then contact was lost. IMD placed the severe cyclonic storm’s landfall near Ongole in Prakasam district at about 1 am that day.
The brother of one of the crew described their last call. “He said strong winds and heavy rain had damaged their boat and that its engine had stopped working,” he said.
How did the search unfold over six days?
The Coast Guard said it got the first report around noon on 3 November. Within a couple of hours a search aircraft took off from Chennai, and a ship sailed from Krishnapatnam. On 5 November searchers sighted the green hull of the submerged boat, and a Coast Guard ship recovered two bodies near it. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu confirmed seven deaths in a press release on 6 November and told officials to speed up post-mortems and send the bodies home without delay.
What relief has Tamil Nadu announced for the families?
The main points
- Nine crew, one boat, from the Chennai fishing harbour on 29 October.
- Seven bodies recovered by 6 November; the last two found on 8 November.
- ₹7 lakh ex gratia per family from the Tamil Nadu government, ₹2 lakh of it at once.
Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay announced the ₹7 lakh relief on 5 November and said the State would bear the cost of bringing the bodies back. Relatives have blamed the boat owner and the Coast Guard for not acting in time. The Fisheries Department said the Coast Guard flew two helicopter patrols and sent personnel to search.
For Context
The Sri Sengalamman was one of several Chennai boats that had run to Andhra Pradesh ports ahead of the storm; Andhra Pradesh officials said three were anchored at Ramayapatnam and one at Nizampatnam, and that the nine men left for Ramayapatnam without informing authorities in either state. After the first recoveries the Coast Guard warned of the “grave risks associated with venturing into the sea during cyclonic conditions” and urged fishermen to follow weather warnings. Murasu crossed between Nellore and Narsapur on 3 November.
Checked against official sources on 11 November 2026.
Sources
- Statement of the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on the deaths of fishermen off the Andhra Pradesh coast, 5 November 2026
- Press release of the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh on the Tamil Nadu fishermen, 6 November 2026
- Indian Coast Guard statement on the search for the Sri Sengalamman crew, 7 November 2026
