2 Filipino survivors from capsized ship off Japan return home

ABS-CBN News

Posted at Sep 19 2020 06:41 PM | Updated as of Sep 19 2020 07:51 PM

2 Filipino survivors from capsized ship off Japan return home 1
Courtesy of the Department of Foreign Affairs

MANILA (UPDATE) - Two Filipino seafarers who were rescued from a capsized cargo ship off Japan returned to the Philippines Saturday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

The survivors of the Panamanian-flagged vessel Gulf Livestock 1 arrived at Terminal 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the DFA posted on Twitter.

They were earlier identified as Eduardo Sareno, the ship's chief officer, and Jay-Nel Rosales, who worked as deck crew. Both are from Cebu.

According to a Kyodo News report Friday, an official at the Japanese Embassy in Manila said the coast guard’s operations are “ongoing.”

Japanese authorities had found dead a third Filipino sailor who was identified as Joel Linao of Polomolok, South Cotabato. His remains arrived in the Philippines Thursday.

The cargo ship capsized on September 2 after it was caught in Typhoon Maysak in East China Sea.

The crew was made up of 39 Filipinos, 2 Kiwis and 2 Australians. The ship, carrying about 6,000 cows, was traveling from Napier in New Zealand to the Chinese port of Tangshan.

The families of the missing Filipino crew have asked President Rodrigo Duterte for help to continue and expand the search operations in Japan.