MANGALORE: Storms, starvation and heavy rain on a boat drifting on the high seas: Three fishermen braved them all for five days and lived to tell the tale.Vincy, Francis Frank and Manohar Putran set sail on their boat ‘Jai Panduranga’ from Bengre at about 2 am on July 23. But after two hours, the engine developed a snag. They then switched on the other engine but to their horror, it started guzzling the scarce fuel, forcing them to switch it off. And when their attempts to tether the boat failed as the anchor broke, the odds were stacked against them. And as if that was not enough, their oars broke, unable to withstand the strong sea current.Soon darkness descended and they had no clue where they were. Unable to bear the hunger pangs, they devoured the lunch they had carried with them.The following day, they were drifting and had nothing to eat and drink. It was a matter of survival. From Sunday they survived on half-cooked fish. “With the help of lunch box, match box and cotton waste, we boiled the fish on all five days. For fresh water, we harvested rain water using the tarpaulin,” Putran said.Finally, on Thursday at around 5.30 pm, they sighted a boat ‘Missiya’ 30 nautical miles from Kannur in Kerala. They grabbed their attention by waving their lungis. The boat, headed by one Muttu, brought them safely ashore.Manohar, expressing gratitude said, “God sent these angels to rescue us.” The fishermen recollected the nightmarish ordeal.“This is a rebirth,” they said, as they alighted the Parashuram Express in Mangalore at 8.20 pm on Friday, to be reunited with their families amid emotional scenes.
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