The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Wednesday rescued 22 crew members of a distressed vessel in the Arabian sea, 185 km from the Porbandar coast in Gujarat.
According to the ICG officials, the rescue mission was launched after a distress alert regarding uncontrolled flooding onboard a merchant vessel was received at 8 AM.
Coast Guard immediately responded and alerted all stakeholders. Despite adverse weather conditions, one Dornier aircraft was launched from Indian Coast Guard Air Station Porbandar at 9.00 AM for situation assessment and relaying of information to the vessels in the vicinity.
ICGS Shoor, already present at sea, was also directed to immediately reach the area.
The ICG ship made its way to the location at top speed while navigating extremely rough seas. The indigenously built twin-engine Advanced Light Helicopters from ICG air station Porbandar were also roped in for the rescue mission.
The vessel was on its way from Khor Fakkan in the UAE to Karwar carrying 6,000 tonnes of Bitumen.