Coast Guard, cops rescue 13 fishermen

Mumbai: At least 13 khalasis were rescued from the deep sea near Palghar, in a joint operation by the Coast Guard and Palghar police, after their fishing boat toppled.

The rescue operation was carried out 34 nautical miles into the sea after fellow fishermen raised an alarm and sent out a SOS.

The Palghar police said that the incident took place at around 4 am when the group was at high sea, to catch fish.

A preliminary probe revealed that the sea was rough and that the boat, identified as Shivneri, could not bear the strong currents, leading to the accident.

The boat toppled, tossing all the khalasis into the sea. There were other fishing boats around but they were at a distance. However, they sent a SOS to the coastal security agencies and the Palghar police.

The Coast Guard rushed a Dornier chopper and a vessel to rescue the fishermen. The search and rescue operation went on for an hour after which, the salvage operation was initiated which went on till late evening.

“The Coast Guard is yet to return from the sea and the operation is still underway. The agency is trying to pull out the sunken boat from the sea. More details are awaited," said Hemant Katkar, spokesperson of Palghar police.