Coast Guard vessel dispatched to rescue Norwegian sailboat

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) dispatched a search and rescue vessel yesterday to rescue 12 passengers on board a Norwegian-registered sailboat which sent a distressed signal off Caluya island in Mindoro last Sunday.

The vessel was expected to reach the area by mid-afternoon yesterday, said Coast Guard spokesman LCmdr. Joseph Coyme.

"We received reports that the passengers, numbering about 12, are fine. We are still verifying the nationalities of the passengers," he said.

Coyme expected the rescue operation to conclude by early evening yesterday. "So far, the reports coming indicate that the distressed sailboat is within sight of the rescuers."

This developed even as a search and rescue operation is still ongoing for a motorboat which has been missing for 11 days now.

The boat Ningning, with seven people on board, including a three-year-old child, has been reported missing after it left Caluya island on Feb. 3 for a five-hour trip to nearby Mindoro island. Relatives of the passengers said the vessel did not arrive at the Mindoro port.

Coast Guard commandant Vice Admiral Arturo Gosingan sent a reconnaissance team — an Islander plane and a helicopter — to fly over the area.

According to Coyme, a decomposing body of a man was found floating near Caluya island. Authorities are still determining whether the dead man was a passenger of the boat.

Coast Guard officials said the missing persons apparently belong to one family. There were unconfirmed reports that the missing people may have been killed due to a land dispute.

"We will continue with the search and rescue operation until we find a clue to the fate of the missing boat and its passengers," Coyme told The STAR.