Talisay City fishers save passengers

He only finished Grade 4 but 50-year-old Talisay City fisherman Dennis Reyes said he knows he can contribute more especially for fellow Filipinos.

That opportunity came Friday night on Aug. 16 after he saw red flares in the sky that signaled a vessel was in trouble.

He joined other fisher folk in rescuing passengers of the MV St. Thomas Aquinas before it sank in the sea after colliding with a cargo vessel.

“We’re expected to help those in need. Why won’t we help them? It hurts when we need help and others disregard us,” Reyes told Cebu Daily News in Cebuano.

Reyes rescued 23 people from the 2GO passenger vessel which was heading for Cebu City.

A fellow fisherman, 28-year-old Jason Evangelista rescued more than 50 people in the water.

“People were shouting. I heard wails for help. It was dark and the only source of light came from the Sulpicio Express Siete,” he said.

Ten days after the sea mishap, he has not returned to the sea to fish.

“Good that I have some savings which I gave to my wife for our needs,” said Reyes, who has eight children.

Reyes said he isn’t after public recognition. He said it was natural for a person to help those in need.

“We even help the dead. I’m not afraid to help,” he said.

Reyes and Evangelista testified in the Special Board of Marine Inquiry yesterday. /Reporter Ador Vincent Mayol