The Indian Coast Guard vessel Veera conducted a successful rescue operation for a fishing boat stranded in the open sea approximately 195 nautical miles off the southern coast during the midnight hours of Sunday. Reports indicate that Veera was conducting its regular patrol duties along the Andhra Pradesh coastline when its radio operator received an urgent distress call from Coast Guard district headquarters-6 at 8 pm on Sunday. The call detailed an incident where a fishing boat experienced a mechanical issue due to a fishing net becoming entangled in its propeller. Additionally, the operator was made aware of a fisherman onboard who had suffered a serious head injury while attempting to disentangle the net, resulting in symptoms of nausea and loss of consciousness.
After verifying the information received, Veera promptly set course towards the distressed boat and established communication with the vessel IFB S Vetri upon arrival at the location. The injured fisherman was safely transferred to Veera for medical treatment. Subsequently, Veera safely docked at Chennai harbor in the early hours of Monday and handed over the fishing boat’s crew to Coast Guard officials for further medical assistance.
According to sources, the fishing boat, a mechanized deep sea gill net vessel, had departed from Nagapattinam on July 21 with a crew of 12 fishermen. While operating within the country’s exclusive economic zone, the boat encountered difficulties when a fishing net became entangled in its propeller, leading to the injury of one of the crew members who attempted to resolve the issue. The distress signal was issued by the boat’s crew, requesting urgent medical aid.
The Coast Guard vessel Veera, under the command of Commandant Ramesh V. Talke, is stationed in Visakhapatnam and played a vital role in the successful rescue mission
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