Date:30/03/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/03/30/stories/2008033050020100.htm

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Crew of sunken dhow rescued

Staff Reporter

MALAPPURAM: Six crew members of a dhow that sank off the Beypore coast on Friday were rescued by fishermen from Tanur early Saturday morning.

The crew members belonged to different parts of the country. They were identified as Vinod Kumar, 47, of Nanmara, Palakkad; Raju, 54, and Bhaskar, 39, of Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu; and Kasam Ahamed, 56, Ahamed, 40, and Sulaiman, 45, of Gujarat.

The rescued crew members were brought to the Tanur police station in Malappuram district and given first-aid. The police said their condition was stable.

The six were handed over to the Coast Guard after a case was registered.

Coast Guard sources said that the dhow, MSV Sandheri, was headed for Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea from Beypore. The vessel, which left Beypore on Friday afternoon, reportedly sank a few nautical miles off the coast after it developed a leak.

The vessel was carrying cement, sand and other building material.

The rescued sailors told the police that they escaped in a lifeboat and were saved by the fishermen.