KARWAR: THIRTY fishermen have been rescued from a damaged fishing boat in the Arabian Sea off Bhatkal port recently.
The boat went for fishing 150-km into the sea on Friday morning. While returning in the evening, the propeller broke down when it was nearing Bhatkal port and it got stuck in the sea. As there were high tides, there were chances the boat would sink. The panicked fishermen in the boat alerted other boats at the port requesting immediate assistance.
A few boats rushed to the spot and rescued all the 30 fishermen from the sinking boat. Later, they tried to tow the boat to the port but could do so only up to Mundalli beach as the boat was already filled with water.
On Saturday morning, the boat was towed to the beach. Nearly 5,000 litres of diesel in the boat were leaked into the sea. The coastal security police visited the spot and a case has been registered at Bhatkal rural police station.