Panaji: Drishti Marine’s lifesavers had their hands full with twenty-seven rescue operations conducted across the state’s coastline over the extended Dussehra weekend, rescuing a woman and child from drowning at Dudhsagar waterfalls, apart from rescuing a Russian woman off Mandrem beach and a kayaker from drowning at Palolem.
At Dudhsagar waterfalls, a mother and her 11-month-old daughter from Kolkata were rescued after the former slipped on the rocks near the waterbody, sending them both plunging into the water. While the woman managed to find a way out of the water, lifesaver Babu Gavli saved the infant, who was struggling in the water, with the help of a rescue board.
A 55-year-old Russian woman was rescued off Mandrem beach after a rough current pulled her in the deeper sections of the sea. Drishti Marine lifesaver Sakharam Bandekar was able to save the victim with the help of a surfboard and bring her back to shore. Two 29-year-old Goan men were rescued off Mandrem, after they were engulfed by a rough wave. Lifesavers Nagesh Barge and Nutan Mote rushed into the water and with the help of a rescue tube and jetski brought the struggling duo back to shore. In a separate incident, a man from Siolim, aged 28 years, was rescued off Mandrem beach.
At Palolem, a 43-year-old male hailing from Karnataka had a kayaking mishap which led to his kayak overturning. Drishti Marine lifesaver Nilesh Velip was quick to respond to his distress and brought him safely to shore.
There were eleven rescues conducted at Calangute beach, which included four double rescues, out of which six individuals were residents of Karnataka. Due to the rough sea conditions the individuals were pulled into the deep sea and were unable to swim back to shore. Drishti Marine lifesavers Leslie Rodrigues, Sajan Nagvekar, Suhash Patil, Nakul Usapkar and Ajay Kamble rushed into the sea ensuring the safety of all the individuals.
One of the double rescues at Calangute beach involved two local males, aged 42 and 52 years, who found themselves struggling in the water while performing Durga visarjan. Lifesavers on duty managed to successfully rescue both of them.
Calangute also reported three single rescues involving a 17-year-old, a 19-year-old and a 20-year-old male hailing from Karnataka.
A 29-year-old woman from Bengaluru was swimming with her family when she got pulled in the water near the Arambol sweet lake and began to drown. Lifesavers Sandeep Mhapankar and Chetan Bandekar rushed into water using a surfboard and rescue tube and brought the victim to shore. At the same beach, a 25-year-old man from Maharashtra was stuck in a rip current and was unable to get back to shore. Lifesaver Nitesh Gadekar and Sandeep Mhapankar rushed into water using a surfboard and rescue tube and brought the victim to safety.
At Baga beach, in three separate incidents, a 31-year-old male from Karnataka, a 33-year-old male from Andhra Pradesh and a 36-year-old male from Russia, who were pulled into the deep sea and were rescued by Drishti Marine lifesavers with the help of a rescue tube, surfboard and jetski. At Majorda, Agonda beaches, a 49-year-old from Hyderabad and a 29-year-old woman from Haryana were rescued. Two local lads from Seraulim, aged 15 and 16 years, who were stranded in the sea were saved from drowning with the help of a rescue tube by lifesavers Shyam Das and Yallesh Bagdi at the same beach.
Drishti Marine lifesavers provided first-aid t0 two individuals, one hailing from Bengaluru at Candolim beach and the other, a Russian citizen, at Keri Beach. A tree had collapsed on the latter’s bike and injured his leg. A Drishti Marine lifesaver immediately administered first-aid to the foreign national.
