Five fishermen died while 50 more were rescued as typhoon ‘Jolina” unleashed its fury in several parts of Luzon and the Visayas.
In Samar, four fishermen drowned after strong waves hit various small fishing vessels off the waters of Eastern Visayas.
Police Staff Sgt. Delon Salazar, of the Sto. Niño Municipal Police Station, said all fishermen came from various areas and were saved after they reached the coastal waters of their town.
He said 52-year old Alejandro Solayao and 39-year old Sanieboy Ebayan, both from Tacloban City, were found dead on the shores of Sto. Niño town at around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Joseph Immas and Benedicto dela Paz, also both of Tacloban City, died on Wednesday morning.
But Salazar said 50 survivors from Catbalogan City and the towns of Daram, Tarangnan and Zumarraga in Samar were rescued.
“They came from various areas. The strong waves brought them here in our shorelines,” said Salazar.
In Marinduque, 21-year old fisherman Jovert Garay died of drowning when their fishing vessel was damaged by strong winds and waves and later sank off the waters of Buenavista town.
Lt. Col. Imelda Tolentino, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office 4B, said four other companions of Garay are still missing.
The missing fishermen were identified by some survivors as Bobby Villavicencio, Bernie Villavicencio, Hermis Villavicencio and Mario Mendito, all residents of Barangay Tungib-Lipata in Buenavista town.
Tolentino said the fishermen were on board the FB Green Horse which set sail to go on fishing somewhere in Palawan on Aug. 28. They were on their way to Buenavista from Lucena City where they unloaded their catch when the incident happened.
Meanwhile, ‘Jolina’ destroyed 53 houses and damaged 218 more in Masbate, based on the data from the Office of Civil Defense in Bicol. It also left about P13.793 million worth of damage to fishing boats and equipment, as well as fish ponds in the province.