Mumbai: A 17-year-old collegian, Mazid Khan, was feared drowned off Aksa beach on Friday afternoon.The search-and-rescue operation, which continued for several hours, was suspended around 8pm; it will resume on Saturday. A fire brigade team, led by station officer Ashish Kesarkar, was involved in the search operation.Khan, a Kandivli resident, and two of his friends entered the Arabian Sea between INS Hamla and JJ Point at 3pm. “While his friends managed to get out of the water, Khan is believed to have been swept away by the strong current,” said a fire brigade official. “Soon after we received an alert, our rescue team from Andheri reached the spot and launched a search operation at Marve beach, while teams from INS Hamla and Navy divers from Colaba carried out search operations off Aksa beach. There is a possibility that the boy may have been swept towards Madh or Manori.”The official added: “The area where the three boys entered the sea is under private ownership and does not have lifeguards. Lifeguards stationed at Aksa beach are also unable to monitor that stretch.”
