REAL, Quezon – Personnel of the Coast Guard and local fisheries council have recovered some 360 kilos of fish from a boat abandoned off the waters of Barangays Ungos and Poblacion in this northeastern town.
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Wednesday said joint personnel from the Coast Guard Stations in northern Quezon and the Municipal Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Council (M-FARMC), Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and Municipal Agricultural Office (MAO) in this town were conducting their joint anti-illegal fishing operation on Nov. 14 when they spotted a passenger/cargo motorized banca adrift off Poblacion 61 in this town.
This prompted the joint team to board the motorized banca, M/BCA “Kevin 2,” and discovered it was deserted with no fishing crew in sight.
Further inspection by the joint coast and local fisheries and agriculture authorities revealed that the vessel was loaded with plastic containers of fish.
A BFAR fish examiner confirmed that the fish haul were caught through blast fishing. (PNA)