The Navy's INS Teg rescued 17 fishermen off the west coast of Mumbai.
The Indian Navy on Saturday rescued 17 fishermen from a boat - caught in rough sea conditions due to Cyclone Kyarr - off the west coast of Mumbai, officials said. The fishermen were stranded as the boat began flooding and developed an engine failure.
Indian Navy's INS Teg, a frigate of the Western Fleet, was returning from its deployment in the Arabian sea when it immediately diverted to the area to rescue the fishermen.
"INS Teg rescued 17 fishermen from a sinking fishing boat called Vaishno Devi Mata off Mumbai High in very severe cyclonic weather and trying conditions in the nick of time," the Navy tweeted.
The Navy's ship made multiple approaches to the fishing boat and was able to rescue all 17 fishermen Minutes after they were all rescued, the fishing boat sank.
Officials said that the rescued fishermen have not suffered any injuries and are in good health.
Cyclone Kyarr might to turn into an "extremely severe" cyclonic storm today and is likely to move west-northwestwards towards the Oman coast at a speed of 14 kilometres per hour, the weather office had said on Saturday.
Rescuers were on standby in Goa and heavy rain was forecast for Karnataka, Maharashtra and some parts of Gujarat.
On Saturday, the Indian Coast Guard had stepped up search and rescue efforts. The Coast Guard has deployed 10 ships, four Dornier aircraft and two helicopters to search, locate and rescue the stranded fishing boats at sea, officials said.