The mayor of Pandan town in Antique on Friday said he and a companion swam for hours in the open sea to ask for help to save his girlfriend, actress Bianca Manalo, and others after their boat capsized in the waters just off the province.
Mayor Jonathan Tan told ABS-CBN news he was with Manalo, actress Ehra Madrigal, and seven others when their boat was hit by strong waves while they were on their way to Mararison Island in Culasi town.
“Napakabilis lang ng pangyayari, 10 to 15 seconds, tumaob na kami. Nag-panic na ang lahat. I had to do something. Kung hindi ko gagawin yun, malulunod kaming lahat,” he told ABS-CBN News.
(Everything happened so fast, in 10 to 15 seconds, our boat capsized. We panicked. I had to do something. If I didn’t do anything, we’ll all drown.)
Among those aboard the vessel were Tom Yeung, Madrigal’s husband; and their other friends and some of Tan’s relatives, namely: Joyce Mallari and her two daughters, Majel Tresche, Torrebeo Barrientos, and Bennie Dable.
Dable, who is Tan’s cousin and bodyguard, died in the incident.
Tan said after several efforts of calling for help, he decided to try to swim to the shore with Barrientos.
“Nagpe-pray ako, sabi ko, ‘Lord, ayoko maging (I was praying, I said, ‘Lord, I don’t want to be) selfish; please save me so I can save them,” he said.
He said they swam 4 kilometers for around 2 hours before they were seen by local fishermen in Brgy. Aras-asan in Sebaste town, who immediately went back to where Manalo and the others were.
Tan said he could not help but cry when he thinks of what could have happened to his companions.
“Napaiyak talaga ako. While we were on our way pabalik sa kanila, sabi ko, ‘Makikita ko pa ba sila? Are they still there?’ Grabe talaga, parang pelikula yung pangyayari,” he said.
(I really cried. While we were on our way back to them, I said, ‘Will I still see them again? Are they still there? It’s unbelievable, everything felt like a movie.)
“Talagang hindi ko ini-expect na mangyayari ito sa amin,” he added.
(I really didn’t expect this would happen to us.)
They received medical attention from the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management after they were rescued.
Tan and his companions are still recuperating from the incident.
