Coast Guard ends search for Bolinao fishermen
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has ended the search for four fishermen whose boat was rammed by a foreign vessel in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) two weeks ago.
“But our coastal patrol on the shorelines of the Ilocos provinces continues,” Lieutenant Senior Grade Jomark Angue, PCG district operations chief in northwestern Luzon, said by phone on Sunday. “Based on our computation, the missing fishermen may have been washed to the coastline by now.”
Fred Celino, Arnold Garcia, Domy de los Santos and Amante Resonable, all from Barangays Arnedo and Concordia here, were separated from their companions a day after their fishing boat was crushed by a foreign vessel on June 20 after taking off from Bolinao town.
Their four companions were rescued four days later by fishermen from Magsingal, Ilocos Sur, but one of them died the following day in a hospital in Vigan City.
Angue said his men had scoured for three days the area where the missing fishermen might have been carried by waves. The PCG began the search on June 27, but had to suspend its mission on June 29 and 30 as Tropical Storm “Dindo” crossed northern Luzon.
On Sunday, Angue said he sent a ship to Batanes to respond to a distress call from the Indonesian bulk carrier, MV Krairatch Dignity, which was drifting 78 nautical miles west-southwest of Batanes.
“The ship will pass by the search area and the crew will have a second look,” he said.
Maritess del Fiero, a sister of one of the missing fishermen, said she has accepted the fate of her brother. With the sea search called off, she said she could only request fishermen to take home her brother’s body if they found him.
Bolinao Mayor Alfonso Celeste said he was only hoping that some foreign embassy personnel would call his office to tell him that one of their ships had rescued the fishermen. Gabriel Cardinoza, Inquirer Northern Luzon
