Visakhapatnam: Commander Abhilash Tomy K.C. of the Indian Navy, who is representing India in the Golden Globe Race 2018, suffered a back injury on Friday after the mast of his indigenously built sailing vessel Thuriya broke during a storm in the south Indian Ocean. He was in the third position out of 11 racers.
The organisers described him as “incapacitated on his bunk inside his boat”. On Saturday, he managed to send a message saying: “Extremely difficult to walk, Might need stretcher, can’t walk, thanks safe inside the boat... Sat phone down.”
Cmdr Tomy’s boat was stranded approximately 1,900 nautical miles (3,704 km) from Perth, Australia, and 2,700 nm (5,020 km) from Cape Comorin (Kanyakumari).
The organisers of the round-the-world race said they were scrambling to rescue Cmdr Tomy but admitted he was “as far from help as you can possibly be”.
The organisers said on the race website: “The Australian Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre is working hard to assess and coordinate all possible options to rescue Abhilash Tomy.” Tomy is able to communicate using a YB3 texting unit but his primary satellite phone is damaged. He has a second satellite phone and a handheld VHF radio packed in an emergency bag, but organisers said he was unable to reach it for the moment.
The organisers said they had urged him to try to get to the bag because it could be crucial in making contact with a plane from Australia and an Indian Air Force plane which might be able to fly over the area. Given the distance from land, the planes will not be able to spend long in the area, the organisers added.
A French fishing boat was also heading to the scene “but may not arrive for a few days”. The Golden Globe Race involves a gruelling 30,000-mile solo circumnavigation of the globe in yachts similar to those used in the first race 50 years ago, with no modern technology allowed except the communication equipment.
Tomy, 39, is the first Indian to circumnavigate the globe. Cmdr Tomy’s boat Thuriya rolled over in extremely rough weather and sea conditions, with wind speeds of 130 kmph and 10-metre high waves. He was in 3rd position, out of 11 international participants, and has sailed over 10,500 nautical miles in the last 84 days since the commencement of the race on July 1. All out efforts are being made to rescue Cmdr Tomy. The Indian Navy stealth frigate, INS Satpura with a Chetak helicopter, and the tanker INS Jyoti have been dispatched for the rescue mission.
