At least 10 fishermen were feared dead after a trawler capsized in the Bay of Bengal near the coast in South 24-Parganas’s Fraserganj early on Wednesday.

Sources said a team of 12 fishermen — all hailing from South 24-Parganas -— in the Hilsa-trawler Haimavati were asleep when the trawler capsized in a sudden high wave near Rakteshwari Island, 25km off the coast. The trawler had sailed on Sunday night from Shibpur-Dasmile.

Fishermen Sankar Sashmal and Saikat Das, residents of Haripur and Debniwas villages, were reportedly on the deck and operating the trawler and managed to jump into the sea. Later, they were rescued by a nearby fishing boat.

According to eyewitnesses, the incident occurred around 5am when the trawler was returning towards the Fraserganj harbour abreast of a few other similar vessels.

The sources informed that the district administration with the help of local fishermen’s welfare associations and the Indian Coast Guard started a search operation.

“The Coast Guard has also launched an aerial search, but till evening no missing fishermen were spotted despite the overturned vessel being located,” said a source.

The sources said that fishermen in nearby boats began dragging the capsized boat towards the Frasergunj harbour with chains, apprehending that the missing crew were trapped underneath.

“But the weather did not permit and we even broke a few chains,” said one fisherman.

Jayanta Kumar Pradhan, assistant director of fisheries (marine), said: “It is not clear how the accident actually occurred. We are waiting for the boats to arrive along with the capsized vessel. Once they arrive, we will check whether the fishermen are really trapped inside. In case no one is found in the trawler, a fresh search will begin from Thursday morning with the help of the Coast Guard.”

Goutam Majhi, a fisherman who was on a nearby boat and witnessed the incident, said the weather was clear but there were strong waves in the sea.

“All of a sudden the Haimabati capsized and we saw two fishermen from the trawler swimming hard in the sea to survive. We tried to approach them but failed owing to strong waves. However, MV Paramita, a nearby trawler, managed to go close and rescue them,” Majhi added.

Bijan Maity, joint secretary of the West Bengal United Fishermen’s association, said it appears that the accident happened as the trawler failed to sustain the waves.

“The incident also an eye opener for us. The physical fitness of the boat to sustain turbulent weather and strong waves needs to be checked to avoid such accidents in future,” Maity added.

After a gap of two months, around 1,500 vessels from the Kakdwip fishing harbour, Namkhana, Raidighi, and Diamond Harbour in South 24-Parganas left for deep sea Hilsa fishing starting June 15.