An SOS from the captain indicate that the crew launched the lifeboat after the ship started to sink.
A cargo vessel from Mangalore to Lakshadweep with six crew members aboard was missing in the rough sea near Aminidevi, 240 nautical miles from Mangalore.
An SOS from the captain indicate that the crew launched the lifeboat after the ship started to sink.
The vessel, Al Akhtar, captained by Shankar of Kanhangad, Kerala, had five sailors from Salai, Gujarat. The captain sent an SOS around 5.50 am to Mustapha, the owner of the vessel in Mangalore.
“In his first message on Saturday evening, Shankar said the vessel had encountered rough seas and water had flooded the engine room, thus crippling the vessel. At 1am on Sunday, he reported that all the three anchors were cut and the vessel was drifting.
The last message sent by Shankar said waves three times the size of his vessel were tossing it. Hence all the three anchors were cut.
The last call at 5.50am said the six crew members were ready with life jackets and the lifeboat was launched as the vessel started sinking,” Mustapha said.
Although two government vessels and two private vessels from Minicoy Island reached the anchorage point of Al Akhtar, the vessel could not be found, he said.
Authorities at the Lakshadweep airport tower said an alert had been sounded by the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD), Bangalore centre, stating that the sea would turn rough.
After this warning, even helicopter and airline operators had suspended operations on Sunday.
The IMD had issued rain and storm alerts for the last three days after a low pressure developed over the Arabian Sea and began moving in the north-westerly direction.
Smaller vessels and fishing vessels in the coastal areas on the western sea board and Lakshadweep were advised not to venture into sea till further notice.
The Lakshadweep area received heavy rain accompanied by wind and mist in the past 24 hours. The reception office of the Lakshadweep Union territory said that over 1,000 trees and 200 houses were damaged due to heavy rain. Over 2,000 people from 400 families were evacuated. Most of the damage took place on Kalpeni Island, where a helipad and a boat jetty were destroyed.
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