As severe cyclonic storm ‘Asani’ in the Bay of Bengal continues to rage on, the Indian Coast Guard on Monday rescued 11 stranded fishermen from the rough sea off Sonapur Beach in Odisha’s Ganjam district.
The fishermen, aboard boat ‘D Jangameeya’, were returning from Visakhapatnam and stranded since 9 am amid high cyclonic winds around 1 km from the coast near Sonepur after suffering from an engine failure.
Unable to manoeuvre the boat to the shore, the fishermen, all residents of Chikiti area of Ganjam district, feared for their lives due to high tides, cyclonic winds and rough sea conditions, according to the statement of the rescued crew members. The Ganjam district administration was alerted about the matter and quickly informed the Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Pradeep Kumar Jena at around 3:15 pm. “I called up the Indian Coast Guard authorities at Paradip who immediately launched a rescue operation. With the help of a chopper, eleven persons have been rescued,” said Jena.
Responding quickly to the situation, the Indian Coast Guard deployed its advanced helicopter ALH MK III from Bhubaneswar for the rescue operation. All the fishermen were safely airlifted to the Sonapur beach. All the fishermen were provided with first aid and served food and water.
The Indian Coast Guard has been working in close coordination with the civil administration of the states of Odisha and West Bengal to ensure minimum casualties at sea ahead of cyclone ‘Asani’. Coast Guard ships on patrol and aircraft on surveillance have been broadcasting weather warnings to fishermen and mariners at sea.
As part of its charter of duties, the Indian Coast Guard undertakes Maritime Search and Rescue operations frequently.
(With inputs from Kailash Behera and Thabir)
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