Cyclone Tauktae: Indian Navy recovers 14 bodies from Arabian Sea so far

Indian Navy has retrieved 14 bodies from the Arabian sea during a search and rescue operation in the aftermath of cyclone Tauktae. Even as the process of identification of the deceased is ongoing it is not yet clear as to which vessels they were from.

A tug boat has reportedly sunk in the Arabian Sea during cyclone Tauktae. It had 13 members on board, two of whom have been rescued by the Navy and search is on for the remaining 11 individuals.

Ships and aircrafts of the Indian Navy had been searching the waters off the coast of Mumbai for the missing 89 individuals who were onboard the barge that sank 35 nautical miles off Mumbai, in the aftermath of cyclone Tauktae. Barge P305, which was engaged by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in contractual work, sank around 7pm on Monday night with 273 crew members on-board. All of whom were forced to jump into the choppy water of the Arabian Sea as the barge sunk.

The navy has rescued 184 of the 273 crew members, some 20 hours after they were forced to brave the rough water of the sea. The subsequent rough weather conditions made it difficult to conduct search and rescue operations. Naval warship INS Kochi arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday with 125 crew members rescued from the barge.

Navy and coast guard have also rescued 137 crew members of GAL Constructor, another barge that ran aground north off Mumbai.

Deputy chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral Murlidhar Sadashiv Pawar said the ongoing search and rescue operation is among the most challenging ones