PRESS RELEASE 
Department of Foreign Affairs
2330 Roxas Blvd., Pasay City, Philippines                                    *      Tel. No. 834-4000                                                 *     www.dfa.gov.ph
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SFA-DDA-127-04                                                                                                                      26 February  2004

FILIPINO SAILOR REPORTED MISSING IN SEA MISHAP OFF RUSSIA
 

26 February 2004 - The Philippine Embassy in Moscow reported late Tuesday that a Filipino sailor among the twenty (20) crewmembers of the ill-fated South Korean ship “Asian Noble” is missing and presumed dead.   The ship sank off the Russian Far East coast en route to Japan with a load of coal.  It had a crew of twelve
(12) Filipinos and eight (8) Koreans.

Nineteen crewmembers were rescued by a passing tanker and were declared out of danger.  They were transported to the Russian port of Nakhodka.

“Even as I commiserate for the loss of one life, I find relief in the news that the rest of the crew are safe and in good condition,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Delia Domingo Albert said upon receipt of the report.  “I also commend the swift action of our Philippine Embassy in Moscow and the Philippine Consulate General
in Vladivostok in attending to the needs of the Filipino seafarers and in coordinating with the Russian authorities for the early repatriation of the survivors”, she added.

The Philippine Embassy in Moscow continues to work with Russian authorities with the hope that the missing Filipino seaman will eventually be found. The Embassy is also currently arranging the issuance of the necessary travel documents for the early repatriation of the Filipino survivors. - END