03 September,2024 10:49 AM IST | Porbandar | mid-day online correspondent
Representative image
Three persons are missing after an Indian Coast Guard ALH helicopter crashed into the Arabian Sea off Gujarat Coast on the intervening night of September 2-3. Officials said that there were four persons on the helicopter of which they have recovered one crew member and have launched a search for three missing members. The officials added that they have deployed four ships and two aircraft for search and rescue operations.
The ICG, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), said that the ALH helicopter was launched at 11.00 pm on Monday to evacuate an injured crew member from Motor Tanker Hari Leela off Porbandar.
"On 02 Sep 2024, ICG ALH helicopter was launched at 11.00 pm to evacuate an injured crew member from the Motor Tanker Hari Leela off Porbandar, Gujarat. The helicopter had to make an emergency hard landing and ditched into the sea. One crew member recovered, search for the remaining three crew members is in progress. ICG has deployed 04 ships & 02 aircraft for rescue efforts."
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On August 26, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) successfully rescued 11 crew members from the MV ITT Puma, a cargo vessel that sank during a night-time operation, according to an official press release. The Mumbai-registered vessel was on its way from Kolkata to Port Blair when it reportedly sank some 90 nautical miles south of Sagar Island in West Bengal. Late on the evening of August 25, the Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) in Chennai received a distress call, reported ANI.
In response, the ICG's Regional Headquarters (North East) in Kolkata quickly dispatched two ICG warships and a Dornier aircraft to the scene. The Dornier aircraft, which was outfitted with excellent night-vision sensors, discovered the liferafts and saw survival red flares fired out by the frightened crew.
Guided by the helicopter, the ICG ship discovered the liferafts, which were roped together and carrying the survivors. Despite the tough weather circumstances, the ICG ships Sarang and Amogh, in collaboration with the Dornier aircraft, carried out a precision sea-air rescue operation, securing the crew's safety during the late hours of August 25 and early hours of August 26.
With ANI inputs