KOCHI: Nineteen fishermen were rescued on Sunday after spending five days in the sea off the Kerala coast, which was battered by strong winds and heavy rainfall following cyclone Ockhi.
Coast Guard ship ICGS Abhinav rescued the crew members of two boats - Bible (10) and Arogya (9) - from the high seas on Sunday morning.
The crew members of Bible were Borjin, 40, Arul Das, 32, Sushoi, 65, Lourde Das, 58, Jerald, 58, Thadevoos, 45, Sajan, 20, George, 21, and Rajans, 55. All of them hail from Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu. The fishermen rescued from Arogya were Vikas, 25, Balamurukan, 24, Selvaraj, 24, Blassin Xavier, 25, Anilkumar, 21, Sajin, 28, all from Nagapattinam, and Assam natives Amar Jyothi Gogoi, 22, Dasramulla, 22 and Moosaika, 23.The rescued men were admitted to government hospitals in Thuravoor and Cherthala.
According to officials, the Coast Guard ship rescued the fishermen by 9 am and informed they would be brought to Andhakaranazhi in Alappuzha. Following this, emergency medical facilities were mobilised and special treatment wards were opened at Thuravoor and Cherthala hospitals. However, the sea became rough and the boats from Andhakaranazhi beach could not reach the ship in the sea. Later, the fishermen were brought to Chellanam fishing harbour. Three fishermen were brought first by 1.30 pm. The health condition of all the rescued is normal. Both the fishing boats had set sail from Colachel coast on November 28. Bible got stuck in the deep sea owing to engine failure. The crew of Arogya spotted the vessel and extended help. However, during this time, cyclone Ockhi hit and both vessels got stuck in the deep sea. It was after five days that Coast Guard ship Abhinav rescued them.
The rescued fishermen pleaded with the Coast Guard personnel to tow their boats to the shore because their livelihoods depended on them. Both the boats were later brought to Chellanam harbour and anchored there.
Earlier, another Coast Guard ship, ICGS Samar, rescued three fishermen, who were brought to Kochi by a Navy helicopter. The rescued fishermen were administered first aid at the Navy hospital INS Sanjeevani, after which they were shifted to Ernakulam General Hospital on Sunday.
No confirmed man-missing cases reported
There are no confirmed man-missing cases reported among the fisher folks registered with the Chellanam, Thoppumpady, Kochi and Munambam harbours