It's a new lease of life for crew members of MV Infinity

Karwar/Mangaluru: It is a new lease of life for the 14 crew members of the merchant ship, MV Infinity, which was stranded in the Arabian Sea off Karwar port, when they were rescued by the personnel of Indian Navy and Coast Guard on Wednesday night.
The ship was stranded in the middle of the sea on Wednesday night as it developed a big crack in the base allowing sea water to gush in.As the ship started listing and there were no pumps to clear the water, the crew members had alerted the Coast Guard seeking help. The Coast Guard and Navy staff rushed to the spot and rescued the crew members.
Recalling the incident Capt. Abhilash Surendran, the master of MV Infinity, thanked Indian Navy officials and the Coast Guard for helping him and his team members return safely. He said the ship carrying 1,700 MT of asphalt, was coming to Karwar from Dubai.
Mangaluru-based Coast Guard Ship Shoor, a 105 meters offshore patrol vessel fitted with advanced navigational and communication equipment, was part of the rescue operations. The tanker had listed to its right side and was sinking due to ingress of seawater. ICGS Shoor sailed out within half an hour of the notice and reached the distressed tanker at 11pm.
Thereafter, the ship dispatched its specialist damage control team to MT Infinity-1 and undertook de-flooding operation continuously for 35 hours in rough sea conditions and high wind speeds including the night time, K R Suresh, DIG, Commander, Coast Guard Karnataka, said.
ICGS Shoor was commissioned on April 16 and is based out of Mangaluru coast. It has a maximum speed of 23 knots and endurance of 6,000 nautical miles and has the capability to perform the role of a command platform and accomplish multi-mission tasks at sea like search and rescue.
Infinity reaches Karwar
The merchant ship was brought to Karwar port on Friday at 10.30 am. The port authorities tweaked the 83 meter long ship to the berth with the help of the tugs. The Coast Guard ship, 'ICGS Shoora', escorted the boat to the Karwar port.
Though, it was brought near the port on Thursday night itself, the port authorities did not allow it inside the port area due to poor lighting. The ship had been anchored about 1 nautical mile from Karwar on Thursday night.
Avishchit Ghadiyal, assistant commandant of Indian Coast Guard, who oversaw the entire operation, said that the personnel had shown exemplary courage in hostile climatic condition to rescue the ship and its crew members.
Capt. C. Swami, Port Director, said that the ship would remain in Karwar port for a week and after completion of the repair works it would sail. He said there is no fear of any pollution due to the mid-sea mishap and the asphalt has not come in contact with the sea water.