Seven fishermen are now confirmed dead after a boat capsized off the Kothapatnam coast near Ongole in Prakasam district, Andhra Pradesh, and two men from the crew of nine are still missing. Two more bodies washed ashore on Friday, a day after five bodies were traced following the disaster.

The boat was carrying nine fishermen from Tamil Nadu’s Chennai when it capsized off Kothapatnam beach. Officials have linked the tragedy to Cyclone Murasu. The sea conditions that struck the coast turned a fishing trip into a fatal ordeal for families thousands of kilometres away from the shoreline where their men were found.

Two more bodies found along the coast

According to Indian Coast Guard officials, the two bodies were found near Vajjireddypalem and Singarayakonda villages of Prakasam district. After consulting with officials from Tamil Nadu, the authorities confirmed that the deceased were identified as Kuppan and Aravind.

The bodies found on Thursday were kept at the mortuary of RIMS Hospital in Ongole. Those five have been identified as Mohan, Murugan, Vijayakanth, Pakkiri Samy and Kuppus. Put together, the names account for the seven men recovered so far, and each identification has come as a grim confirmation for relatives waiting for news.

The search is still on for the remaining two fishermen using an aircraft.

The hunt for the missing continues

The rescue effort has not ended with the recovery of seven bodies. Searchers are still looking for the remaining two fishermen, and an aircraft is being used to scan the coastline. Every hour without a sighting narrows the window of hope for the families of those still unaccounted for.

A team of scuba diving experts has also travelled from Visakhapatnam, joining personnel from Chennai and local Marine Police officials. Their task is to inspect the capsized boat itself. Briefings with local police and Marine Police officials were held on Friday after the team examined the wreck off Kothapatnam.

Why the Andhra coast is central to this story

This is not a tragedy happening far from Andhra Pradesh. The capsize happened off an Andhra coastline, the bodies were recovered from villages in Prakasam district, and the victims are being held and processed at a hospital in Ongole. Local police, the Marine Police and Andhra-based divers are carrying the operation, even though the dead and missing men came from Tamil Nadu. For coastal districts like Prakasam, storms like Cyclone Murasu bring danger directly to the sea, and this incident shows how quickly a routine fishing trip can turn deadly.

What comes next

Two fishermen are still missing, and the investigation into how the boat went down is now tied to the diving inspection. Officials have not yet released further details about the cause of the capsize beyond the link to Cyclone Murasu. Families in Chennai and across Tamil Nadu will be watching for the next update, and every body that washes ashore will bring the same painful verification process.

For now, the numbers are stark. Nine men left a Chennai-linked boat, seven have been confirmed dead, and two are still out there somewhere along the Prakasam coast.