PCG deploys ships, aircraft as CCG rescues Filipino crew off Scarborough

MANILA, Philippines — The China Coast Guard (CCG) on Friday rescued several Filipino crew members whose cargo vessel capsized off Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, while the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) deployed its vessels and aircraft for search and rescue (SAR) operations.

The Singapore-flagged M/V Devon Bay, loaded with iron ore, had 21 Filipino crew.

M/V Devon Bay’s last known position was recorded at approximately 141 nautical miles (NM) west of Sabangan Point in Ango Bay, Pangasinan, at around 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, which faces Panatag Shoal. 

“The PCG received a distress report that the vessel was already listing at approximately 25 degrees,” the PCG said in a statement on Friday.

 PCG, citing  M/V Devon Bay’s company  K-Line Roro Bulk Ship Management Co., Ltd., confirmed that 17 individuals were rescued by the CCG, while four crew members remain missing.

On the other hand, CCG said they rescued 13 Filipino crew, citing information from its Maritime Search and Rescue Center in Hainan Island they received at 1:34 a.m. on Friday.

The PCG will deploy BRP Teresa Magbanua and BRP Cape San Agustin, as well as two of its aircraft to conduct SAR operations to find the remaining crew members.

According to the PCG, what the CCG did is in line with the  United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), which obliges all states to require their ships to assist persons in distress at sea.

“All ships may pass under high seas freedom of navigation as accorded by the Unclos,” PCG said. “Said freedom, however, does not allow law enforcement patrols by foreign vessels.”

Since its effective takeover in 2012, China has enforced what experts call an “exclusion zone enforcement” around Panatag, preventing fisherfolk from accessing it. 

READ: China summons PH envoy in Beijing over Tarriela’s remarks

Through its “10-dash line,” Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, but Manila brought the matter to an international court, which effectively ruled in its favor in 2016.

The arbitral tribunal also declared the Panatag Shoal a traditional fishing ground for the Philippines, China and Vietnam. 

In refusal to recognize this ruling, China continued its aggressive actions there, the most notable of which occurred on Aug. 11, 2025, which led to the collision of its CCG vessel and People’s Liberation Army-Navy warship. /das