BENGALURU – A blast caused by a fire on a ship under repair at India’sCochin Shipyard Ltd killed five people on Tuesday, and injured around 11, acompany spokeswoman said, prompting the government to call for a quickenquiry.

The spokeswoman said smoke hampered rescue operations initially and that aninvestigation would be launched soon. The ship belongs to the country’s topenergy explorer, Oil and Natural Gas Corp Ltd, she added.

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An ONGC official said the ship was undergoing maintenance at state-runCochin Shipyard on the country’s southwest coast.

The blast took place inside the water tank, said M.P. Dinesh, a seniorpolice official in the southern state of Kerala where the shipyard islocated.

“The casualties occurred in the smoke that spilled out from the tank,according to preliminary information,” he told reporters. “All peopletrapped in the ship have been evacuated. The situation is under controlnow.” – Agencies