Helicopter rescue saves a villager trapped by strong river currents
Bhubaneswar: In a dramatic rescue operation, a man from Odisha’s Malkangiri district was airlifted to safety on Monday afternoon after being stranded for nearly 24 hours on a rock in the middle of the surging Saberi River.
The victim, identified as Irma Sodi of Kotamateru village, had been returning from Sukma in neighbouring Chhattisgarh in a country-made boat when it capsized amid strong currents near Matapaka panchayat under Malkangiri police limits.
Clinging to survival, Irma first held onto a tree before managing to climb onto a mid-river rock, where he remained trapped without food or water. Locals spotted him the next morning and alerted authorities.
A joint rescue team comprising personnel from the Fire Services of Odisha and Chhattisgarh, CRPF, and local police launched a high-risk mission to save him. With river currents proving too dangerous for boats, a helicopter was pressed into service, finally lifting the exhausted man to safety.
“Despite the best efforts of ground personnel, the turbulent flow delayed the operation. The helicopter was the only way to reach him,” an official involved in the mission said.
After his rescue, Irma was rushed to a hospital in Chhattisgarh, where doctors confirmed that his condition is stable.
