Seven friends have drowned after the boat they were in capsized while they were trying to take a selfie in the middle of a reservoir.
One person is missing and two others are fighting for their lives in hospital, following the incident that took place shortly after the group finished recording a Facebook Live.
The eight friends were on a boat with three locals at Vena reservoir near Nagpur in India when the tragedy struck.
According to the police, the incident occurred when a number of men came to one side of the boat to take selfies and videos, causing it to tilt and take on water.
“They were so busy clicking photos and making videos on their mobile phones that they failed to see that water was entering their boat,” Police Inspector Chandrashekhar Bahadure told The Hindu.
“Some of them were under the influence of alcohol. We have managed to recover seven bodies and search is on for one more.”
“Two of the three survivors are still critical and have been admitted to a hospital in Nagpur.”
The victims were said to be aged between 21 and 28 years old and include Pankaj Doifode, an employee of HDFC bank.
The survivors include one local and two people who were part of the group from Nagpur.
Pankaj Nirkar, a friend who was not on board the boat, said: “I was shocked when I heard of this incident. I was watching their live video on Facebook yesterday evening.
“They had invited me to this picnic and I was supposed to go with them, but my wife stopped me at the last moment or else even I would not have been alive today.”
The deceased have been identified as Harshal Adamne, 18; his brother Chetan Adamne, 20; Govardhan Thote, 18; Rahul Walode, 23; Ram Shivarkar, 24, Maqsood Sheikh, 27, and Abdul Sayeed, 21.
