PANAJI
Despite intensive search and rescue operations by the Coast Guard, both surface and aerial, there is no trace of the four missing crew or the barge Shri Krishna, which is feared capsized amid inclement weather off the Goa coast on December 2.
With nearly eight days gone, family members of the missing crew have lost hope of finding any of them alive.
The ill-fated barge, laden with iron ore cargo, had left Maharashtra's Jaigarh port for Mormugao but was hit by rough weather, heavy rain and big waves. Some crew members survived and were rescued after staying afloat for nearly 30 hours.
The barge is believed to have capsized and despite accounts of the survivors as to its location off Vengurla, there is no sign of any wreckage.
Normally, search and rescue operations are abandoned after 72 hours but the Coast Guard has made an exception in this case.
