Coast Guard rescues five crew members of sinking tug boat near Mumbai

Palghar, Nov 13 (PTI) The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) saved the lives of five crew members after their tug boat sank off the Vadhavan coast in Maharashtra's Palghar district while one person was still missing, officials said on Thursday.

Tug boat `Amrut-16', which had sailed from Mumbai on November 8, was anchored some 10 nautical miles from the Vadhavan coast, said a Coast Guard release.

Water ingress caused it to sink around 2:00 am on November 12.

The crew issued a distress call, which was first answered by a nearby rescue boat named 'Annapurna.' The 'Annapurna' crew successfully took the five survivors aboard their vessel.

The Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (Mumbai) was also informed about the sinking, and the Coast Guard station at Dahanu immediately dispatched the patrol boat IC-117, the release said.

"The timely and courageous action of the patrol boat IC-117 saved the lives of five personnel. Despite the adverse sea conditions, our personnel bravely brought all the five personnel to the safe shore. Currently, one personnel is missing and a search is underway for him," an official said.

The rescued crew members were identified as Pawan Vishnu Ram (29), Dharmendra Kumar Nandkishore Singh (43), Govind Kumar Videshwar Mahato (19), Suraj Vishwakarma (38) and Jadan Raghuveersingh Pathania (30).

They were taken to Dahanu Sub-District Hospital, Agar and their condition was stable, officials said. PTI COR KRK