15 people rescued from drifting boat in Basilan sea

In a joint rescue operation, the Philippine Navy and the United States’ Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines on Saturday rescued 15 people from a motorboat, which broke down and drifted for hours off Basilan in the southern Philippines, official sources said.

The boat was heading back to Zamboanga from Maluso with six staff of a USAID project in Basilan, three local employees, three community workers, a cameraman of ABS-CBN and two sea watch crew when it developed a technical snag in mid-sea, the press statement said.

Frencie Carreon, communication officer of the Alliance for Mindanao Off-grid Renewable Energy (AMORE), said the crew tried to fix the boat all the way from Basilan to Zamboanga but it ran out of gas and almost capsized near Sta. Cruz Island.

She said 3P Foundation Chairman Armando de Rossi, a member of the Philippine Coast Guard Auxilliary, facilitated the rescue after one of their staff onboard the drifting speedboat contacted them over cellular phone for help.

Thereafter the Naval Forces Western Mindanao and the US forces alerted their rescue teams, who located the drifting boat at past 8:00 in the evening and towed it to the Zamboanga port, Carreon said.

“The speedboat was located near Canas, off Maluso shore, one area in Basilan which was identified to be a haven of the dreaded local terrorists, the Abu Sayyaf Group,” she continued.

In a press statement, Col. James Linder, JSOTF-Philippines commander, acknowledged the successful rescue efforts by the Philippine Navy and his men in “combined, shoulder-to-shoulder efforts in the true spirit of Balikatan.”

Rescued were David Roland Ramos, Balma Sali, Malou Realobit, Ernie Pitok, two other staff of AMORE and Mirant Philippines, senior program officers Leo Valle and Anna Caspe of the Peace and Equity Foundation, Paul Reales of ABS-CBN, Banguingui town engineer Jack Ordoñez, two other aides of Banguingui mayor, Assaali Muhalli, chairman of the Kahikukuk Renewable Energy and Community Development Association; and two crew of the police Bantay Dagat Mobile Patrol.

“Everyone of us is so thankful to the Philippine Navy, US forces and Mr. de Rossi. The whole rescue operations sounded like an off-shoot of the Balikatan program,” Carreon said. (ZS)