By Gabriela Baron
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) deployed on Monday, Feb. 27, its search and rescue (SAR) teams for the missing Taiwanese-flagged fishing vessel.
The fishing vessel Sheng Feng no. 128, with one Taiwanese and five Indonesian fishermen, was last seen 414 nautical miles northwest of Palau on Feb. 17.
The PCG Command Center immediately directed Coast Guard Districts in Eastern Visayas, Bicol, Southeastern Mindanao, Northeastern Mindanao, and Northeastern Luzon to launch SAR operations.
According to Taiwan Coast Guard Attaché Commander Arthur Yang, two United States Coast Guard aircraft initially conducted air surveillance but yielded a negative result, one commercial vessel also completed a search at the scene with no finding.
Meanwhile, eight Taiwanese fishing vessels also joined the operations and two Taiwan Coast Guard cutters will also search the vicinity watters.
