Remains of Filipino Seafarer Repatriated from St. Petersburg

The Port of St. Petersburg, Russia, where the Filipino seafarer died and from where his remains were repatriated to the Philippines (photo: terminalspb.ru). Inset: The MV Solong, the ship of the Filipino seafarer. (photo: marinetraffic.com)

MOSCOW 09 August 2018 – The remains of a Filipino seafarer who died while his ship was docked at the Port of St. Petersburg have been returned home to his family in the Philippines. 

The repatriation was done with the assistance of the Philippine Honorary Consul General in St. Petersburg Sergey Alexeev.

The remains arrived in Manila on 21 July 2018 on a Turkish Airlines flight, and was arranged by the manning agency of the Filipino seafarer. 

According to the initial investigation, the Filipino seafarer died due to drowning.  It appears the seafarer fell off the MV Solong during cargo operations on 07 July 2018. When the Filipino missed the usual watch duty, a search was immediately conducted, and a diving team found the missed seafarer in the water later that day.

“We wish to convey our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of our kababayan who died.  A thorough investigation is being undertaken by the concerned authorities and we expect to hear from them shortly,” Ambassador to Russia Carlos D. Sorreta said.

Ambassador Sorreta also assured the family of the Filipino seafarer that the Philippine Government will make sure that they get all appropriate benefits. 

“We are grateful to the manning agency and their partners for their cooperation and look forward to working with them in order to process the benefits for the family,” the Ambassador added. END

For more information, visit www.moscowpe.dfa.gov.ph/ https://www.facebook.com/moscowpe/ or https://www.facebook.com/moscowpeconsular/