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COTABATO CITY (MindaNews/13 September) – Eighteen crewmembers of a fishing boat were rescued after their vessel was destroyed by strong waves off the coast of Maguindanao on Thursday.
The 18 crewmembers, all from Lebak, Sultan Kudarat, survived but their vessel, MV Sea Target, was a total wreck.
The survivors told rescuers they were heading toward the coastline of Lebak from Sultan Naga Dimaporo in Lanao del Norte when the boat’s engine malfunctioned, 7pm on September 11, Wednesday according Moamar Manalao, village chief of Barangay Nalkan, Datu Blah Sinsuat town in Magundanao that led the rescue efforts and fed the fishermen.
They said they used the smaller boat that accompanied the damaged one and managed to stay afloat until help came in the early morning after other fishermen spotted them.
Manalao’s men helped bring the damaged fishing vessel to the coast of Nalkan.
“They told me huge waves destroyed the vessel,” Manalao said in an interview. “They said the waves were as high as a two-story building.
The survivors have been brought back to their hometown. (Ferdinandh Cabrera/MindaNews)
