By: Weatherguy Adonis
Adonis Manzan
Rescued Alive, Fishermen Now Safe Ashore With Families, Another Town Searches For Three (3) More
Iloilo City, Philippines, 02 June 2012, (1340Z)–The last thing this nation would love to hear is that no reports of missing, or dead in line with the occurrence of a storm. At the height of Severe Tropical Storm “MAWAR,” locally named as “Ambo,” authorities have scrambled to search for an earlier report of missing fishermen in Catanduanes Province. The storm has been raging for the last two (2) days of development and has now reached Typhoon category according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC), but still rated by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) as Severe Tropical Storm status. According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) in Manila, led by Executive Director Benito Ramos, all thirty (30) missing fishermen from Catanduanes are now accounted for and are in the safety of their families after several hours of tense and agonizing scouring of the seas and potential whereabouts of the missing party as the storm continues barreling through the Philippine Sea even as of writing.
Fig. 1.0 "0932Z MTSAT-Floater RGB Imagery of Typhoon 'MAWAR/AMBO/04W' according to JTWC, and still tagged as Severe Tropical Storm by JMA, as it churns off the Philippine Sea. Imagery Courtesy: NOAA."
The local authorities have managed to contact the families of the fishermen, according to the report, a successful search and rescue operation (SAR) was launched by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) immediately after the alarm was sounded and as the words were spread of the missing fishing vessel F/B Crismar, local officials across the neighboring towns closest to where the missing were reportedly last saw were already deployed even it was very tough sea conditions, negotiating the unrelenting rough seas off the East Philippine Sea and nearby coasts.
According to the Inquirer, a Philippine daily broadsheet, “the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management (PDRRMC) (in Catanduanes Province) said the boat also ran out of fuel but it was given fuel by people on in small motorized boats who found the fishing boat adrifiting in rough seas. It said the boat was monitored by the Coast Guard about 20 miles (32 km) away from Panay Island.”
Fig. 2.0 "Google map of the location of the Island Province of Catanduanes, Philippines. Imagery Courtesy: Google."
Reports says that all thirty (30) crew members on board the fishing vessel were accounted for as they reached the safety of the shores along with their rescuers off Viga, Catanduanes Island at around 1000Z (0600PM-PHL), Saturday, 02 June 2012.
A Bitter Sweet Reunion, More Tragic News Mar The Brief Celebration
Despite the successful rescue, another setback has yet challenged the authorities, as three (3) fishermen remain missing in another town of Pandan, in Catanduanes Island, on board the motorized banca “St. Philip” at around 2200Z (0600AM-PHL) on Wednesday30 May 2012.
The fishermen were identified as Nelson Pante, Jr., Romarico Bermejo and Carlito De Quiros, and they were missing for two (2) days and running since Thursday, 31 May 2012.
Hundreds Remain Stranded Off Albay Ports
According to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), they have been preventing all types of seacrafts from leaving the port sine yesterday, 01 June 2012, as the official state weather bureau, Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) raised Public Storm Warning Signal No. 1, in the Bicol Region and neighboring Islands of Eastern Samar.
Close to 900 passengers were stranded in various ports in Albay on Saturday, 02 June 2012 due to bad weather caused by Severe Tropical Storm “Ambo,” known internationally as “Mawar.”
Said Tropical Storm was packing winds of 120 km/hr (65 kt), gusts to 148 km/hr (80 kt), according to JMA. It is forecast to veer North and Northeast towards the Southernmost Islands of Okinawa in Japan on between Sunday evening, 03 June 2012 and Monday, 04 June 2012.
Fig. 3.0 "A JMA demographic on the trajectory of Severe Tropical Storm 'MAWAR/AMBO/04W.' Imagery Courtesy: JMA."
Authorities have barred vessels from leaving ports of Tabaco City, Albay and Virac, Catanduanes until the weather lets up and all clear is announced.
The Philippines is geographically situated at the heart of Asia, composed of a large archipelago, with 7,107 Islands scattered across wide bodies of water right at the heart of the Western Pacific Region, the fisheries sector has become a vital industry that has sustained the livelihood of Millions upon Millions of Filipinos in the country. It is no wonder during inclement weather, most of the fisher folks often face a formidable challenge of choosing between life and death, and whether to bring home a wealthy catch of the bounties of the seas, and at times, some do not get the chance to even see their families and loved ones back into shores alive.
It is a stark reality for most of my people, and we never stop in giving you a heads-up when a storm brews along the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) and even beyond our shores.
We at Westernpacificweather.com are aiming to provide you a better light of information, fast, accurate and on-time with a network of dedicated people across Asia the best we could!
Keep it here for more tropical updates from across the region, and also, if you’re interested to join in our discussion forum at Westernpacificforecast.com, just ask one of the authors here for the most up-to-date and well-informed netizens in the region
This has been your Weatherguy, hailing from the Philippines saying “Stay safe and be one step ahead of the weather!” ;)
With data from JTWC, JMA, NOAA, ANC24/7, The Philippine Daily Inquirer, Google and Westernpacificweather.com
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