Passenger vessel hits fishing boat off Oriental Mindoro; 1 missing, 27 rescued

At least one fisherman is missing and 27 others were rescued by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) after a fishing boat from Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro was hit by an unidentified passenger vessel. 

The fishing boat, FB John Michael, was carrying 28 fishermen at the time of the incident.

According to the Coast Guard Station Oriental Mindoro, the incident occurred at approximately 14 to 16 nautical miles from the town of Mansalay.

“Hindi rin sila makapag-maneuver kasi nga meron silang mga hatak-hatak na mga lambat. So nu’ng nakita nila ‘yung barko, nagtalunan po sila lahat,” Captain Airland Lapitan, acting commander of the Coast Guard Station Oriental Mindoro, said.

The Coast Guard reported that only parts of the boat were damaged and it did not sink, allowing the fishermen to return safely to the vessel.

However, the whereabouts of a 20-year-old fisherman is still unknown.

“Nagka-conduct pa rin tayo ng search and rescue doon sa nawawalang mangingisda. Meron na rin tayong possible location base doon sa search pattern na ginawa natin para ma-locate natin ‘yung nawawalang mangingisda,” Lapitan said.

Meanwhile, a 52-year-old fisherman, the father of the missing young man, sustained an injury in the foot. He was brought to the hospital but was discharged later.

The fishermen rescued have returned home.

The Coast Guard Station Oriental Mindoro is coordinating with the Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) Batangas to identify the vessel that passed through the area.

Investigation is ongoing as of this writing. —GMA Regional TV