A Catholic bishop in the Philippines called on the faithful to pray for the safety of 38 Filipino crew members onboard a missing cargo vessel in Japan.
“We have to pray more and hope for the best,” said Bishop Ruperto Santos of Balanga, vice chairman of the Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People.
“We implore our almighty God to give us miracles that they will be spared and eventually saved,” he said. “We must turn to God and trust Him all the more,” he added.
The prelate also called on everyone to “work together” and “do what is necessary” to search and rescue the missing seafarers.
The Apostleship of the Seas also appealed to chaplains to pray and offer Holy Masses for the welfare of the seafarers.
At least 38 Filipino seafarers remained missing in chilly waters off southwestern Japan a day after their cargo ship capsized on Wednesday, September 2.
The Panamanian-flagged Gulf Livestock 1 had a total 43 crew members, consisting of 39 Filipinos, two Australians and two New Zealand nationals.
The ship was transporting 6,000 cattle from New Zealand to China when it sent a distress signal from the waters off Amami Oshima Island in southwestern Japan after being caught up in a typhoon.
“So far, one Filipino was reported to have been rescued by the Japanese Coast Guard,” said the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo.
The Philippine Consulate General in Osaka said Japan’s Coast Guard had launched a second search and rescue mission amid an incoming typhoon.
Media reports said flights were canceled or delayed and downed trees and other debris caused light damage after Typhoon Maysak hit the peninsula with its 170-kilometer-per-hour winds.
It was the fourth to hit the peninsula this year and left about 120,000 households without power across South Korea.
Source: Licas Philippines
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