Inquirer file photo
MANILA, Philippines — The 21 Filipino seafarers rescued from the Houthi-hit MV Tutor in the Red Sea are set to arrive in Manila on Monday afternoon, days after they were extracted from the vessel by combined international forces, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said on Sunday.
But the fate of the 22nd Filipino crew member, whose identity was not immediately disclosed, remained unknown as search operations continued, officials said.
READ: 21 PH crewmen rescued from ship struck by Houthi rebels
In a statement, the DMW said the rescued seafarers were received by Philippine Ambassador to Bahrain Anne Jalando-on Louis on Saturday and were expected to board a flight home on Sunday evening.
The speedy arrangement for the 21 seafarers’ homecoming came after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered on Friday all concerned government agencies to exert efforts to bring the Filipino sailors to safety, even as one remained missing.
The sailors arrived at around 5:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Port of Manama in Bahrain, with all 21 “safe and sound,” according to Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac.
The seafarers will be joined by Labor Attaché Hector Cruz, the DMW said.
The Tutor was attacked on June 12 while sailing along the Southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
Drones and missiles
The rebels struck off the western coast of Yemen and hit the Liberia-flagged Tutor with drones and missiles, according to the DMW.
The attack, which occurred near the Yemeni port of Hodeidah, reportedly caused “severe flooding” and damage to the engine room of the Greek-owned bulk carrier.
The Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea are included in the expanded “high-risk areas” following several attacks by the Houthi rebels.
The DMW had issued a directive that Filipino seafarers poised to be deployed in “warlike and high-risk areas” would be given the option to refuse, and with the right to be repatriated and given ample compensation.
In an earlier statement, Cacdac said all 22 Filipino crew of MV Tutor had given consent to be deployed for a voyage that traverses the Red Sea.
“Not only did they not refuse, they also wrote their consent to sail,” he said.
On Sunday, the DMW said the government was working with the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations to bring the 21 rescued seafarers to Djibouti and bring them back to Manila.
Cacdac clarified that the DMW continued to make efforts to find the missing crew member.
Not stopping search
“We were assured [by the manning agency] that they will not stop, not cease in terms of locating our missing seafarer who is just within the ship,” he said.
On Sunday, the United States Naval Forces Central Command (Navcent) said it had rescued the crew of the Tutor on June 12.
Sailors assigned to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group airlifted the crew out on Saturday, Navcent said, adding that one remained missing.
In claiming responsibility for the attack, the Houthis said it was part of their campaign in support of the Palestinians and focused on ships bound for Israel.