COVID-19 vaccines saved from sinking boat in Quezon town

LUCENA CITY –– Coronavirus vaccines for the towns of Polillo and Burdeos in Quezon province were nearly wasted after the motorized boat carrying them capsized in the port of Real town on Tuesday, police said Friday.

A report from the Quezon provincial police said the vaccines were loaded in an outrigger boat bound for Polillo Island, where the two towns are located, when the vessel hit an old concrete post at the port in Barangay Ungos around 7:30 a.m.

The accident caused the boat to sink. However, some passengers and a team of policemen and Department of Health personnel, who were escorting the medical cargo immediately transferred the vaccines to another boat bound for the island.

The transport of the vaccines to their destinations continued on the same day, the police said.

According to the report, boat captain Prudencio San Jose told police investigators that he was not familiar with the location of the old post at the port, resulting in the accident. INQ

LZB