Passenger traffic in seaports across the country rose during this year’s Holy Week travel rush despite higher fuel costs amid the ongoing tensions in the Middle East, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) assessed on Monday, April 6.

PCG spokesperson Commodore Noemie Cayabyab said the number of travelers from Palm Sunday, March 28, to Easter Sunday, April 5, reached 3.4 million, surpassing last year’s figures of three million.

“Even with the challenges brought by rising fuel prices in the market, a large number of passengers still traveled to the provinces. The increase compared to last year is quite significant,” Cayabyab said.

The PCG identified key routes in Cebu, Iloilo, Aklan, Batangas, and Oriental Mindoro with heavy passenger volume due to their proximity to tourist destinations.

Based on the full data recording, Easter Sunday had the highest number of monitored passengers, with 219,297 outbound passengers and 189,629 inbound passengers in 354 seaports nationwide.

“The PCG expected that ports would be crowded on Sunday because this is when people return to Metro Manila from the provinces,” Cayabyab said.

Meanwhile, the PCG also recorded 37 incidents of drowning and near-drowning this Holy Week, lower than the 53 incidents logged last year.

Out of the 37 incidents, the PCG tallied 19 fatalities while the rest were rescued.

Most of the fatalities were drunken individuals who still ventured into the beach or sea to swim, or children who were unsupervised by their parents while swimming.

“Perhaps the information campaign among coastal communities and even beach owners was effective along with the deployment of our personnel and the regular conduct of coastal patrols, hence, the fewer incidents,” Cayabyab said.