World · Philippines Bureau
Body of missing Batangas fisherman recovered after week-long search
A 47-year-old fisherman who disappeared when his vessel caught fire off Calatagan has been found dead in the same waters. The body of Celideño Hernandez was recovered Thursday morning, more than a week after his fishing boat was discovered burning on September 13.
LSN Philippines ·
The remains of Hernandez, a resident of Barangay Tanagan in Lucena City, were located at approximately 11 a.m. in waters adjacent to where his fishing boat had been found engulfed in flames.
The fisherman had been missing since September 13, when his vessel was discovered burning off the coast of Calatagan in Batangas province. The discovery of the burning boat triggered a search and rescue operation that continued until Thursday's recovery of his body.
The circumstances surrounding the boat fire and Hernandez's death remain under investigation. Coast guard and local authorities are working to determine the cause of the incident and the events leading up to the fisherman's disappearance.
The recovery brings an end to a week-long search effort by maritime authorities and local rescue teams who had been combing the waters since the initial discovery of the burning vessel.