Circumnavigator Abhilash Tomy's yacht capsizes in Indian-Ocean, Navy sends help
The Indian Navy has sent frigate INS Satpura to rescue 39-year-old Golden Globe Race Commander Abhilash Tomy who was injured after his yacht capsized in the Indian Ocean, off Perth on Friday. Australian defense forces have also joined hands with Indian Navy to aid Tomy's rescue. A recipient of Kirti Chakra, Tomy was competing in the race which means circumnavigating 30,000 nautical miles alone.
On Friday, Tomy's yacht met with an extremely rough weather. He sent a distress signal telling mast of his yacht was broken. His indigenously built vessel is called 'Thuriya'. He informed he suffered severe back injury and couldn't get up. Reportedly, he is 1,900 nautical miles away from Perth. 'Thuriya' was at the third place and had covered 10,500 nautical miles since July 1, 2018.
Notably, the storm didn't just affect Tomy. The 70-knot winds and 14 meter high waves also dismasted the yacht of Ireland's Gregor McGuckin. But after the storm, he informed he was fine, a report issued by Les Sables d'Olonne, France said. The Code Red Alert which was issued by Tomy is as follows: ROLLED. DISMASTED. SEVERE BACK INJURY. CANNOT GET UP.
Twitter handle @abhilashtomy informed the captain is safe, and inside the boat. "His tracker is working. He has activated the EPIRB. Help is on its way," the tweet read. Meanwhile, Indian Navy spokesperson in a tweet said efforts are on to get in touch with Cdr Tomy. Tomy, a prominent sailor, was the first Indian to circumnavigate the globe in 2013.
