DMW: 17 Pinoy seafarers safe after attack on ship

Metro Manila, Philippines - Seventeen Filipino crew members of a bulk carrier are safe and set to return to the country after they were attacked in the Red Sea, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said Tuesday, July 8.

Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Cacdac said in a virtual briefing that the Filipino seafarers of the Liberian-flagged and Greek-operated vessel MV Magic Seas will return home “later this week.”

The Magic Seas was hit by gunfire, drones, and missiles on Sunday, with Houthi rebels claiming responsibility.

In a news release, the DMW said the Filipinos were “all accounted for and are now safely accommodated at a hotel in Djibouti in East Africa, including the ships’ Romanian master and Vietnamese chief engineer.”

“The Department remains in close coordination with relevant government agencies and with the LMA (licensed manning agency) to facilitate the safe and swift repatriation of the affected Filipino seafarers,” Cacdac was quoted as saying.

During the virtual briefing, Cacdac said the principal of the MV Magic Seas “will definitely be prohibited” from boarding Filipino seafarers should it insist to navigate or traverse the Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden.