3 killed after high tide submerges jetty in eastern India

At least three people were killed and several others injured Wednesday after a high tide submerged a jetty in India's eastern state of West Bengal, police said.

The jetty was located in Bhadreswar of Hooghly district, about 41 km north of Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal.

"Today a jetty was got submerged in water here due to high tide," a police official posted at Bhadreswar told Xinhua over telephone. "Three bodies have been fished out from water, while as twenty others were rescued by locals and police."

Following the incident, police teams rushed to the spot along with divers to help people.

The police official said rescue work on the spot was going on.

"It was a temporary jetty, which submerged under water due to high tide in the river," a local resident Anup Sen said. "More than 50 people were present on the jetty when it got submerged."

According to locals, some people survived by swimming towards the bank at their own, while others were helped by police and people that had gathered after the incident.

The West Bengal chief minister has expressed grief over the mishap.

Reports said the local government has announced a compensation of over 3,000 U.S. dollars to the families of victims in the tragedy.

On Sunday, three people were killed after a boat carrying them capsized in north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Endit