Rescued Indian sailors sent home after arriving in Dubai

Dubai: Eleven Indian sailors, stranded in the Arabian Sea and rescued by an Antiguan ship, arrived in Jebel Ali, Dubai.

They were received by Indian consulate and shipping company officials.

MV Al Bilal, a wooden dhow with Indian sailors from Gujarat, was aught in rough weather in the Arabian Sea on February 2. Water started to seep in after the dhow's engine failed.

Stranded sailors sent out distress signals, which were picked up by MV Sinar Riau, an Antiguan ship owned by a German national.

The Ukranian captain of MV Riau rescued the sailors. MV Sinar Riau docked at Jebel Ali on February 5.

Tickets for the sailors to go back home were arranged by the consulate with the help of the Indian Community Welfare Committee and they left for Mumbai by an Indian Airlines flight.