At least 17 Vietnamese crew members were rescued after their vessel almost shrunk off in the vicinity waters off Balabac, Palawan, on Tuesday, according to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
"The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Philippine National Police Maritime Group (PNP MARIG) have rescued the 17 Vietnamese crew of a Vietnamese-flagged general cargo vessel, VIET HAI STAR, that is currently half-submerged in the vicinity waters off Balabac, Palawan," PCG said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
According to PCG, the VIET HAI Star vessel, which is carrying 4,000 tons of rice, ran aground at approximately 810 yards off Balabac Port at around 9 p.m.
Report said that the water entered the 16-year-old ship from the starboard side of the bow and completely flooded the forward compartments.
The crew decided to abandon the ship at 4:20 a.m. and all 17 foreign crew members were successfully rescued by responding Coast Guard and police seacraft, with all arriving at Balabac Port in good condition.
"The joint SAR team carrying the 17 Vietnamese crew - all in good physical condition - arrived at Balabac Port around 5:10AM," PCG said.
At around 9:21 a.m., the Coast Guard Station in South Western Palawan reported that the Viet Hai Star was half-submerged.
An oil spill assessment was conducted by PCG's Marine Environmental Protection Unit (MEPU) in Palawan and has so far yielded a negative result.
PCG said it will continue an additional investigation regarding the maritime incident.
