PCG suspends Taal search due to bad weather

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has suspended its search operations for the remains of the missing sabungeros in Taal Lake in Batangas due to bad weather brought by Tropical Storm Crising.

In a Viber message sent to reporters, Department of Justice (DOJ) spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic Clavano IV said that as of 9:29 a.m. yesterday, the PCG’s underwater search operation, which utilizes technical divers and remotely operated vehicle (ROV), “was temporarily placed on standby due to continuous rainfall and surface runoff from the nearby river.”

“Elevated turbidity levels significantly reduced underwater visibility resulting in unfavorable condition for the conduct of any diving operations,” Clavano said.

Crising has intensified from a tropical depression into a tropical storm as of yesterday afternoon, battering Luzon.

In a chance interview with reporters yesterday, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the search operations in Taal Lake would likely take about six months.

“As of now, it’s on hold because the weather does not permit us to carry out a good search. That’s why I’ve been saying that it would take about six months, because we expect to really face challenging conditions here before we complete the search,” he said in mixed English and Filipino.

Remulla on Thursday confirmed that the Coast Guard team recovered from Taal Lake two sacks containing human skeletal remains believed to be of the missing sabungeros. Remulla said the recovery of the human remains was significant as it proves the credibility of the testimony of whistle-blower Julie Patidongan that the bodies of the slain sabungeros were dumped in Taal Lake.

Remulla said authorities have also exhumed three remains from a cemetery in Batangas as part of the government’s search for the sabungeros. He said these remains were recovered from Taal Lake in 2020, but the police decided to bury the bodies when they remained unclaimed from the funeral parlor. — Jasper Emmanuel Arcalas, Emmanuel Tupas