In a sigh of relief, four out of seven fishermen who were reported missing at sea from Vizhinjam coast have returned back to the shore safely. (Representational Image)

Thiruvananthapuram: In a sigh of relief, four out of seven fishermen who were reported missing at sea from Vizhinjam coast have returned back to the shore safely.

According to the family members, the fishermen were stranded in the deep sea on Friday after the engine of their boat were damaged due to the harsh waves.

However, by Saturday morning they were able to restart the engine following which they reached the shore all by themselves.

Seven fishermen were reported missing as rains intensified and lashed several parts of Kerala for the third day on Saturday under the influence of the southwest monsoon.

But the three other fishermen from Kollam's Neendakara district are still missing.

Local authorities in Kerala on Saturday issued alerts across the state anticipating heavy downpour in the next few days. The move is taken after India Meteorological Department (IMD) bulletin predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall in isolated parts of the region.