Published April 5, 2021, 5:43 PM
DAVAO CITY – Nine Filipino crew members of a motor launch boat that sank after an explosion were rescued by troops of the Marine Battalion Landing Team-12 (MBLT-12) on Easter Sunday.
In a statement Monday, Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command (WesMinCom) commander Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan Jr. said the Joint Task Force Tawi-Tawi reported that crew members of M/L Marissa were “loading gasoline from a tanker from Sabah when its generator battery sparked, causing its explosion.”
MBLT-12 commanding officer Lt. Col. Aladdin Caluza said the troops of the 312th Marine Company based in Panguan Island which was “the farthest island detachment” and the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (MDRRMO) of Sitangkai responded to the area.
9 boatmen rescued after explosion at sea off Tawi-Tawi
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Philippine Marines
rescued 9 Filipino boatmen, three of them injured, following an explosion while
loading gasoline from a Malaysian tanker near the border in Sabah.
Military photos show one of 9 boatmen posing while his boat burns from afar following an explosion that injured 3 people.
Army Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Jr., chief
of the Western Mindanao Command, said the Filipino boat ML Marissa burned and sunk
off Bulu-Bulu Island in Tawi-Tawi province.
The tanker, which came from Sabah,
quickly fled the area before troops could arrive. The incident occurred over
the weekend.