Two cargo vessels have sunk offshore Philippines in two separate accidents on January 17, 2017.
A cargo vessel M/V Meridian Tres sank in the vicinity of Sto Niño Dive Site, Boho, with 29 people onboard, Philippine Coast Guard informed.
The Coast Guard immediately conducted search and rescue operation together with several other search and rescue vessels.
A total of twenty-eight crew were rescued and one was missing.
The M/V Meridian Tres departed Cebu City port en route to Tacloban City when it was battered by strong winds and big waves causing it to sink.
M/V Meridian Tres is owned and operated by Meridian Cargoes Forwarder Incorporation.
M/V Virgina 1 cargo vessel
The second cargo vessel, M/V Virgina 1, sank in a separate accident after it caught fire near the Caballo Island.
The vessel with 11 crew onboard was en route to Roxas, Palawan from Delpan Pier, Binondo, Manila.
Investigation to the survivors including the master of the vessel revealed that a fire coming from the purser’s cabin was sighted by the crew. All the crew tried to combat the fire but without any result. It spread on the main deck and reached the midship of the vessel where combustible cargoes were stored.
Six crew member boarded a life raft while five others boarded a life boat to abandon the ship when it started sinking.
A little after the boarding, the lifeboat with five survivors capsized due to strong winds and big waves. The crew managed to cling to the boat, however, one of them died due to severe exhaustion, Coast Guard said.
Another survivor was rescued later by a fisherman at Bogiw Island, near Brgy Papaya, Nasugbu Batangas.
Coast Guard search and rescue team is still on the look-out for the five missing crew.
The M/V Virgina 1 is owned by Virginia Shipping Lines Corporation.