The Philippine Coast Guard reported that 26 Filipino seamen were rescued on the morning of Friday, January 9 by the crew of a Chinese vessel in the waters off Camiguin Island. The Filipinos’ LCT 378 capsized after being slammed by big waves and strong winds, which caused the flooding of the vessel’s cargo hold..
The vessel’s captain, Edilberto I. Jugarap, managed to send a distress signal when the ship continued to list, and subsequently issued orders to abandon ship at approximately 8:30 a.m.. The boat capsized shortly thereafter.
Luckily for the crew, the distress signal had been received by the MV Tongying, who responded onboard two inflatable rafts and came to the rescue of the 26 seamen.
The call to the Coast Guard Action Center (CGS) was made by Jack Yu, one of the MV Tongying’s crew members, who also coordinated with the CGS for the transfer of the rescued seamen.
The CGS in Dapitan arranged for the safe transfer of the 26 seamen to the MV Aleson Con Carrier 9. The crew members taken to the Coast Guard Station Dapitan, where they were received medical attention, and cooperated with coast guard officials who conducted further investigation