Surigao ship mishap yields four dead

The LCT Cebu Great Ocean, skippered by Capt. Mario Palacio, ran aground along the shore of Barangay Cantapoy on Monday amid rough seas

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Wednesday revealed that rescuers found four bodies of crew members of the ship that ran aground amid rough seas in Malimono, Surigao del Norte.

Seven crew members, meantime, were rescued while nine others are still missing after the LCT Cebu Great Ocean ran aground while seeking shelter from rough waters churned up by typhoon “Bising.”

In a statement, PCG spokesperson Commodore Armando Balilo disclosed that the Coast Guard received reports on the surviving and dead crew members of LCT Cebu Great Ocean on Wednesday afternoon.

He added that residents found the dead bodies along the shores of Barangays Jubgan and Balite in San Francisco town.

The PCG identified one of the four fatalities as Norman Galon, while the other three bodies are still unidentified.

The survivors, on the other hand, were identified as chief mate Roger Polo, crew members Noli Labucay, Arjie Bacarra, Joejie Villanueva, Felipe Queben and John Renzo Guanzon. The seventh has yet to be identified.

They were found by PCG personnel and residents in different parts of Malimono and San Francisco, from 9 p.m. Tuesday to 6 a.m. Wednesday and they are currently undergoing treatment at different medical facilities.

Balilo added that Coast Guard members, police and residents are looking for nine more crew members.

To recall, the LCT Cebu Great Ocean — skippered by Capt. Mario Palacio — ran aground along the shore of Barangay Cantapoy, Malimono, on Monday, amid rough seas. The ship, loaded with nickel ore and about 2,000 liters of diesel, was taking shelter and its crew reportedly abandoned it.

The PCG spokesperson stressed that investigations will be carried out after search and rescue operations to determine what caused the ship to run aground and if the incident was an effect of typhoon “Bising.”

As of 1 p.m. of Wednesday, the PCG and Philippine National Police-Maritime Group continued the search and rescue operations to look for other missing crewmembers.

A land mobility vehicle was also deployed for the patrol operations in the shoreline areas of Malimono and San Francisco, the PCG added.