By Team Mangalorean
Pics Rajesh Shetty

MANGALORE Jul 27: An Indonesian freighter today nearly hit the beach after it drifted into the Karnataka territorial water in the Arabian Sea. The freighter was registered in Jakarta and was going to Iran after an Iranian company had purchased it. The Andrian III as it is called had 6 Indonesian crew and an Iranian captain.

The freighter ran out of fuel and supplies some ten days back and the crew were without food and drinking water for last three days and were on the verge of dehydration. For some reason their radio was also not working and only after entering the Karnataka territorial waters the captain could send a message on VHF set which was received by the Coast Guard at Mangalore. The ship had drifted 10 nautical miles inside the Karnataka territorial waters as its engine had stopped working due to lack of fuel.

The Coast guard which swung into action immediately sent out a tug and other smaller boats to the spot where the ship was moving aimlessly and stabilized it. It was later towed to a distance of 10 nautical miles to the outer anchorage of the New Mangalore Port and was anchored there safely.

According to the Coastal Police Force Inspector Mr. Mukund Naik the Andrian III was given 58 barrels of fuel, provisions, food items, drinking water and an emergency radio set. It is to be seen that if the vessel was fit enough and able to make the rest of the journey to Iran with the newly stocked fuel and provisions.

Mr. Naik told Mangalorean.com that he along with his colleagues boarded the vessel and inspected the hold and other parts of the ship and convinced himself that there were no incriminating items aboard the ship. It was purchased by an Iranian owner and the ship was going from Jakarta to Iran on an empty hold.

The Police commissioner Mr. Seemanth Kumar Singh and Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada district Mr. V. Ponnuraj visited the Tanneerbavi village in the morning and gathered information and monitored the situation.