4 bodies recovered as search continues for missing fishermen off Iloilo

BACOLOD CITY – Rescuers found four bodies of the nine missing crew members of a fishing boat that sank in the waters between Carles town in Iloilo province and Sicogon Island last Friday.

Recovered at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday were the remains of Norberto Parlotza of Bantayan Island, Cebu, and Rommel Engle of Cadiz City, according to Captain Ludovico Librilla, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Western Visayas deputy commander.

Two other bodies were found floating in the sea but authorities have yet to identify them.

PCG boats and divers were still searching for the five other missing persons who may have been trapped inside the vessel, Librilla said.

Engle’s body was brought back to Cadiz City while Parlotza’s remains were turned over to his family in Bantayan, Cebu.

An investigation team from PCG central office in Metro Manila is set to conduct an investigation into the sinking of St. Peter The Fisherman II owned by Tristar Shipping Corp.

Pablito Desamparado, a survivor, said they were fishing when big waves and strong wind battered their fishing boat, causing it to tilt on its left side and sink.