Three Malayali sailors who were detained by the Nigerian Navy for almost a year had an emotional reunion with their families at the Cochin International Airport on their return via the South African city of Cape Town on Saturday afternoon.
Milton D’Couth of Mulavukad, Sanu Jose of Elamkulam, and V. Vijith of Kollam were among the 26-member crew, including 16 Indians, eight Sri Lankans and one each from Philippines and Poland, aboard the very large crude oil carrier MT Heroic Idun.
“There was this huge excitement and sense of freedom on landing on home soil. Communication was the biggest problem during detention since our captors allowed us access to mobile phones only for a few minutes once in one or two months. They wanted us to communicate with none other than our families,” recalled Mr. D’Couth with relief writ large on his face.
