Saturday, June 11, 2011

Cargo vessel rescues 24 fishermen off Pangasinan

By VR/Sunnex
Sun Star Manila, Saturday, June 11, 2011

A CARGO vessel rescued 24 fishermen whose ship sank off Pangasinan at the height of storm Dodong, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) reported on Friday.

With the assistance of a Philippine Navy islander plane, the MV Sea Palace was able to locate and eventually rescue the 24 fishermen, OCD Ilocos region director Andrew Alex Uy said.

The group still proceeded to fish onboard the F/B 3MS Wolf at the Scarborough Shoal off Zambales.

However, the vessel lost radio contact on their way to back to Bolinao, Pangasinan on Thursday afternoon, prompting the search.

Earlier, it was reported that the fishermen numbered 26 and that they were at at the Spratlys Island or in the South China Sea off Palawan.

At around 12 noon Friday, a Navy aircraft spotted the fishermen 38 nautical miles northwest of Bolinao, floating in the water with their life jackets, Uy said.

"They were floating. Its fortunate that all of them have life jackets," he said.

He said the aircraft then spotted the transiting cargo vessel. “The Navy established communication , it coordinated with the MV Sea Palace to pick up the victim and ferry them…All of them are alive and were rescued,” he said.

The MV Sea Palace is expected to arrive Bolinao 4:30 p.m Friday.

sunstar.com.ph


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