Cyclone Tauktae: Rescued from barge, workmen recall hours of horror at sea

If not for the navy, many say they probably wouldn't have made it

Battling tidal waves as high as 10 metres and strong winds while trying to stay afloat in the cyclone-hit Arabian Sea for almost 12 hours, workmen rescued from a sinking barge narrated their horrifying experience. Some of them said they had almost lost hope of making it back alive.

The warship, INS Kochi, arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday with 125 workmen rescued from barge P305, an accommodation barge that sank as Cyclone Tauktae unleashed its fury.

Of the 273 people on the ill-fated barge, the Indian Navy rescued 184 so far.

“It was a horrifying situation on the barge,” recalled 19-year-old workman Manoj