Two of the fishermen who went out into the Bay of Bengal from here and other parts of East Godavari district in mechanised boats were drowned and the search is continuing for the rest. Unconfirmed reports put the toll at eight.

According to East Godavari district collector, H. Arun Kumar, 29 out of the 42 fishing boats which moved out into the sea on June 16 had reached the shore and the search was on to trace and rescue the rest. The Coast Guard and the helicopters of the oil companies such as Reliance, Cairn Energy were on the job.

Some of the fishing boats arrived at Visakhapatnam and Baruva in Srikakulam district on Tuesday.

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