Mangaluru: The Indian Coast Guard personnel yet again rescued stranded fishermen at sea, braving turbulent waves, on June 9.

A Tamil Nadu registered fishing boat St. Joseph (Reg No, IND-TN-15-MM-5844) had sailed from Kochi with a crew of 10 onboard. In the extremely rough seas, the boat lost its engine and navigation control and was stranded off the New Mangalore Port due to engine failure. Fearing for their life due to the inclement weather, with wind speeds up to 45 knots, swell of heights more than 4 meters and heavy rains, the crew signalled the coast guard for rescuing them.

The coast guards ship ICGS Amartya intercepted the distress message of the stranded boat on June 8 and rescue efforts were launched immediately. However, the severe weather and sea conditions thwarted several efforts of the coast guards to rescue the fishermen throughout the night. Undeterred ICG vessel successfully connected a tow to the ship in the morning on June 9.

The rescued boat was towed to the NMPT port here. The rescued fishermen thanked their “guardian angels”, the brave personnel of Coast Guards.