PCG:  A fisherman was accidentally hit by a passing speedboat while he was conducting fishing venture at vicinity 600 meters away from the shoreline of Pristine Beach, Barangay Jacana, Puerto Princesa, Palawan on December 15. 

On December 15 at 9:55 AM, a certain Ms. Laiza Valdez of Patrol 117 emergency hotline informed Coast Guard Station Puerto Princesa thru phone call that a fisherman was hit by a speed boat at the vicinity waters off Pristine Beach, Barangay Jacana, Puerto Princesa, Palawan. 

Upon receipt of the information, CGS Puerto Princesa personnel immediately proceeded to the reported area of incident and sighted the victim who was already dead. The victim was identified to be Mr. Joel P Rengel, 34 years old, a resident of Barangay Jacana, Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

Meanwhile, investigation revealed that at 7:20am of the same day, Mr. Rengel went on for fishing venture using spear and arrow at the vicinity six hundred (600) meters away from the shoreline of Pristine Beach. Accordingly, while the victim was under water, the passing speedboat accidentally struck his head by its propeller which caused Rengel’s death.

The unregistered Speedboat “Seadog” with a Yamaha 75HP engine is owned by the Moana Inn and Diving Center which was operated by Mr. Angelito Alcansado who is also a resident of Barangay Jacana, Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

Moreover, the victim was transferred to St. Peter Funeral Homes and was accompanied by his relatives for autopsy and proper disposition. The Speedboat owner/operator will be issued a Maritime Violation Receipt (MVR) that will properly be endorsed to MARINA Palawan for adjudication.

Further, Moana Hotel Inn and Diving Center thru its employee, Mr. Ernesto Carbonez Jr, was advised to register their Speedboat and the operator must secure a boat captain license from MARINA. The fishing folks were also advised to take extra precautionary measures while on fishing ventures within the area of the abovementioned area to prevent similar incident in the future.