Kolkata: In a challenging mid-sea operation, 50 passengers, including 16 students, were rescued by the Coast Guard after the vessel in which they were travelling developed a technical snag and started drifting.
On Friday, around 11.45am, the Coast Guard station at remote Kamorta Island in Andaman and Nicobar Islands received an SOS message from MV Galathea. “Please save our lives… there is an engine failure and our vessel is drifting towards mid sea. I don’t have any control over the vessel and the sea is extremely rough and the weather is inclement. School children on board… please help,” the captain of the vessel alerted the local port management that further informed the Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard officer stationed at Kamorta swung into action and launched a quick rescue operation saving 50 lives, including 30 women and 16 children. “It was a difficult rescue operation because the weather was extremely rough. We coordinated the evacuation by utilising various surface assets, including Gemini of Coast Guard Ship C422, two local fishing boats and boats. The incident took place nearly 80 miles from the maritime international border. We finished our rescue operation in a record 45-50 minutes,” Deputy Commandant Pratik Payal told News18 over phone from Port Blair.
It was learnt the vessel was ferrying passengers and school children from Kamorta Island to Champion Islands. The children were returning home after attending theirs schools at Kamorta Island, an island in the Nicobar Islands chain. It is located in the northeast Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. The rescued passengers were provided primary medical attention and all of them are said to be safe.
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