DOT asks divers to help search for missing passengers of sunken yacht off Palawan
BAD DREAM – A diving trip turned into a nightmare after the dive yacht MY Dream Keeper sank in the vicinity of Tubbataha Reef on Sunday morning. (PHOTO FROM PCG FB PAGE)
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Tourism (DOT) has tapped the Philippine Commission on Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD) to assist in the ongoing search and rescue efforts for the four people who went missing after a dive yacht sank Tubbataha Reef off Palawan.
In a statement on Monday, the DOT said Secretary Christina Frasco immediately instructed its diving arm, including the PCSSD, “to extend all assistance possible to the survivors” of MY Dream Keeper, which sank Sunday morning.
The DOT added that it is in close coordination with the concerned government agencies, including the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the Department of National Defense, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Navy.
According to the PCG, MY Dream Keeper carried 15 crew members, 12 guests / passengers and five dive masters.
So far, only 28 of them have been rescued, while four others are still missing, it noted. (Aliah Gumasing, INQUIRER.net trainee)
