Four members of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) remain missing after their rescue boat capsized in waters off Abulug town in Cagayan province while en route to rescue the crew of a tugboat in dangerous waters on Wednesday. In a statement on Thursday, the PCG said a search and rescue (SAR) operation was launched to find the four rescuers in the morning but was temporarily suspended due to bad weather. ‘Nakatakda na ring magpadala ng Coast Guard Aviation Force (CGAF) helicopter sa naturang katubigan para makatulong sa paghahanap sa apat na PCG rescuers (The CGAF is scheduled to deploy a helicopter in the said waters to help search for the PCG rescuers),’ it said. The missing team was dispatched at around 4 p.m. on Wednesday to rescue the seven crew aboard tugboat M/Tug Iroquis located 21 nautical miles from Aparri. On the way to their destination, their aluminum boat capsized due to strong winds and large waves spawned by Typhoon Egay. There has been no word yet on the status of the seven crew aboard the tugboat. Typhoon Egay has weakened after battering Northern Luzon with intense winds and heavy rains and has left the Philippine Area of Responsibility before noon on Thursday.
Source: Philippines News Agency