The Philippine Coast Guard on Sunday received 15 survivors and the remains of two crew members of a stricken cargo vessel that capsized near Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea last week.
At a turn-over operation approximately 168 nautical miles west of Tambobong, Pangasinan, the PCG received the crew members of the M/V Devon Bay from the China Coast Guard (CCG), which had rescued them.
The PCG on Friday said it had received a report that the CCG had rescued the crew of the Singaporean-flagged general cargo vessel, which encountered a maritime incident en route to Yangjiang, China from Gutalac, Zamboanga del Sur.
Also on Friday, the Chinese Embassy said that the CCG had retrieved 17 crew, of whom “14 are in stable condition, 2 have been confirmed dead, and 1 remains under emergency medical treatment.”
Loaded with iron ore, the Devon Bay was manned by a crew of 21, all Filipinos. With 15 survivors and two bodies retrieved by the PCG, there are four more crew unaccounted for.
The PCG said the boat carrying the Devon Bay crew will arrive in Manila on Monday.
“BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701) is scheduled to arrive at Pier 13, Port Area, Manila in the early morning of January 26, 2026,” PCG spokesperson Captain Noemie Cayabyab said in a statement.
Cayabyab also said that the PCG thanks the CCG for the humanitarian assistance it extended to the crew of the Devon Bay.
The PCG also said that the BRP Cape San Agustin (MRRV-4408) and a PCG Islander aircraft are continuing the search for four more of the Devon Bay’s crew members in the area. — BM, GMA Integrated News
