The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported today that five Filipino ship crew members have gone missing near the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean.
According to the DFA’s statement, the crew members vanished after their Taiwanese-owned fishing vessel caught fire on Monday.
However, the DFA didn’t identify the missing crew members.
Antonio Lagdameo, the Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom, is still trying to get more information about the crew members. The embassy in London is currently coordinating with the authorities.
A report posted two days ago on the Facebook account of the Falkland Islands Government identified the Taiwanese ship as Jung Ron. It mentioned that 64 crew members have already been rescued but five are still missing.
It also said that the ship caught fire when it was located 60 nautical miles north of Stanley, the Island’s capital. The statement said the cause of the fire has yet to be established.
Jung Ron’s operator is planning to send another vessel to assess the condition of the ship and to see if the vessel can be dragged away from its location safely.
According to The Economist, a quarter of the world’s ship crew members are Filipinos, making the Philippines the biggest source of mariners. Companies started hiring Filipinos in the 1970s when they could no longer afford to hire staff from Western countries.
