4 dead after boat capsizes in Zamboanga del Sur
Rescuers searched on Sunday, June 1, 2025, for the three-year-old boy, one of the 13 passengers of the boat that capsized along the waters of Panguil Bay in Barangay Cabgan, Tambulig, Zamboanga del Sur. PHOTO COURTESY OF TAMBULIG DRRMO
PAGADIAN CITY, ZAMBOANGA DEL SUR – Four passengers–two women and two minors–were confirmed dead after a boat capsized in the Panguil Bay waters near Barangay Cabgan, Tambulig town in Zamboanga del Sur on Saturday.
Nilo Muñoz, the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer (DRRMO) of Tambulig town, said a total of four adults and nine minors from Barangay Balas, Aurora town in Zamboanga del Sur had boarded the boat on their way to Barangay Bocator, Tangub City of Misamis Occidental province.
One of the victims managed to swim towards land and asked for rescue from local residents.
Muñoz said the nine minors had ages between 17 and three years old and that even the boat driver was only 12 years old.
He said the boat was on its way to Tangub City for a scheduled harvest of their fish cage when its engine malfunctioned and was later overturned by strong waves at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
The two women were first recovered underwater by local rescuers and were rushed to the nearest hospital in Bonifacio town, Misamis Occidental. But the attending physician who examined them had already pronounced them dead.
According to Muñoz, the body of the nine-year-old boy was found around 9 p.m. on Saturday, while that of the three-year-old boy was found in the morning of Sunday.
The other nine passengers incurred minor injuries and were brought to the hospital for treatment.
Muñoz said their team travelled for two hours to the area of the incident through Bonifacio town, as there was no direct access road from Barangay Poblacion to Barangay Cabgan of Tambulig.
They encountered delays as they had to walk part of the way since they arrived near the area at low tide, when their rescue boat could not directly navigate the low waters towards Barangay Cabgan.
