ILOILO CITY – Eight fishermen were rescued when a boat capsized off Semirara Island, the national coal-mining reservation in Caluya town, Antique province.
The Philippine Coast Guard of Antique (PCG-Antique) reported that the eight fishermen onboard M/B Roxanne are all safe after they were rescued Tuesday, July 20.
It was the PCG-Substation in Semirara that conducted the rescue operations after a distress call was made by M/B Roxanne.
The boat was on its way back to Semirara from Minakawit, Occidental Mindoro when it encountered strong winds and rain brought by habagat or the southwest monsoon. It was battered by big waves, which caused the boat to flip over and capsized.
After they eight were rescued, they were given medical attention by the Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction Management of Semirara.
Meanwhile, PCG-Antique is urging fishermen and others not to venture out into the open sea if the waves are too strong to avoid a similar accident.