Chinese ship rescues 4 Pinoy fishermen adrift at sea

11/09/2009

Four Filipino fishermen, starving while adrift at sea for four days, were rescued by a passing Chinese cargo vessel, the Chinese embassy in Manila said yesterday.

The vessel, the Heng Sheng Men, which happened to pass by the waters northwest of Manila, found the fishermen afloat at 8:37 a.m. on Thursday.

Ship captain Wang Baoquan said the fishermen received necessary medical checkups on board and were found to be in relatively good condition.

He said the Chinese crew prepared porridge for the fishermen who had nothing to eat for several days.

Wang said his boat was on the back way to China after coming from India when his crew spotted the four men at sea holding on to flotsam and were calling for help.

“Heng Sheng Men immediately altered its course and began rescue efforts. Two hours later, the four survivors were taken on board safe and sound,” he said.

The fishermen said their vessel sank Sunday last week while tropical storm “Santi” was still battering the northern part of the country. They said they managed to hold on to some flotsam and had been drifting at sea since then.

The Chinese Embassy was informed of the incident at 12 a.m. Thursday which in turn reported the matter to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG). The PCG dispatched a rescue vessel to meet the Filipinos and their Chinese rescuers.

At 6:30 p.m., the four fishermen were turned over to Philippine authorities.

The fishermen and the PCG thanked the captain and the crew of the Heng Sheng Men for rescuing the Filipinos in distress then.

Michaela P. del Callar

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