Remains of one of the fisherfolk who died when Pacific Anna, a ship registered under the Marshall Islands, allegedly rammed their fishing boat, which led to the death of two other fishers. | PHOTO: PCG
MANILA, Philippines (Updated) — A Marshall Islands-registered oil tanker may have collided with a Filipino fishing boat, leading to the death of three Zambales fishermen, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Wednesday.
“After cross-referencing the fishermen’s account, the date, and the time, we conducted a thorough check on marine traffic,” the PCG said in a statement.
“It turns out that Pacific Anna, a crude oil tanker vessel registered under the flag of Marshall Islands, aligns with the details provided by the fishermen,” it added.
The PCG said it would reach out to the Marshall Islands authorities and the next port to be visited by the said crude oil tanker ship as part of the investigation.
WATCH: Maritime traffic data from PCG shows that “Pacific Anna” passed over the position of Filipino boat FB Dearyn.
FB Dearyn was moored to a fish aggregating device when Pacific Anna allegedly run over the fishing boat 85 NM northwest of Scarborough Shoal. @inquirerdotnet pic.twitter.com/OL75ALFgyM
— John Eric Mendoza (@JEMendozaINQ) October 4, 2023
A crew member of FFB Dearyn said the incident allegedly involving Pacific Anna occurred at around 4:20 a.m. on Monday while their mother boat was moored to a “payao” or a raft used to attract and catch fish 85 nautical miles (NM) northwest of the shoal also locally known as Bajo de Masinloc and Panatag Shoal or 180 NM from Agno, Pangasinan.
“The mother boat submerged, resulting in the death of its three crew members, including its boat captain,” the PCG said in its report.
“Due to the adverse weather conditions causing darkness, the crew on board the mother boat failed to detect an unidentified vessel approaching, resulting in a collision that caused the mother boat to capsize,” it added.
The unidentified boat captain was 47 years old, while the two other fishermen were 62 and 38 years of age.
Their remains were transported to Barangay Cato in Infanta, Pangasinan.
Meanwhile, 11 crew members survived the maritime incident.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Wednesday said he was “deeply saddened” by the incident.
RELATED STORIES
Think tank: China ships at Julian Felipe, 2019 ramming of PH boat are from same fleet
Philippines turns up heat on China over boats massing in West Philippine Sea