10 missing as boat sinks off Tawi-Tawi

MANILA, Philippines - Authorities are searching for 10 members of a Badjao tribe who were reported missing after three motorboats sank off Tawi-Tawi on Tuesday morning, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said yesterday.

PCG-Bongao acting station commander Mario Buena said the 10 missing persons were part of a group, which included women and children, crossing to Sabah in Malaysia.

Buena said the missing persons, believed to be all male, might have decided to stay as huge waves battered their boats.

A search and rescue team from the PCG, the maritime police and the Philippine Navy were dispatched to search for them.

“We could not find their boats. But we have not stopped searching for them. We have been going to the nearby islands to look for them,” Buena said.

He said they have asked the local police to inform them as soon as the missing persons are found.

Reports said the three motorboats with 20 passengers and crewmen on board left Bongao in Tawi-Tawi for Sabah on the night of Aug. 11.

Hours later, a foreign vessel informed the Philippine Navy that they rescued six children and four women who said their boats capsized.

The victims were brought to a hospital before they were turned over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.      

Buena said the Badjaos were fond of going to Sabah without proper documents.  “We have been trying to stop them as they would only be arrested as soon as they get there. They ignored us,” he said.