Another Filipino crew member of the Panamanian-flagged vessel Gulf Livestock 1 was found floating alone in a life raft, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday night.
“He is conscious and able to walk,” the DFA said. However, it is withholding the identity of the rescued Filipino seafarer pending his consent to publish his name. He is the second among the 43 freighter crew rescued alive by the Japanese Coast Guard since the ship sent a distress call on Wednesday when it was 115 miles west of Amami Oshima Island.
A few hours after the distress call, Japanese Coast Guard rescued Eduardo Sareno, a 45-year-old Filipino chief officer of the freighter.
A video released by the Japanese Coast Guard showed the dramatic rescue of Sareno while floating in darkness and being led to a boat with a rope.
The DFA said Sareno is currently recovering in the hospital and is reported to be in "good health."
The Filipino survivors will be repatriated to the Philippines once COVID-19 protocols are cleared.
Meanwhile, the unidentified man found this morning by the Japanese Coast Guard while floating face down off the waters in Kagoshima Prefecture has been confirmed dead, the DFA said.
In an updated bulletin, the DFA said the identity of the person could not be established “considering the condition of the remains.”
The unidentified person was wearing a blue jacket, with the label “FITTER,” when pulled out from the water by Japanese rescuers.