All 28 passengers and crew were reported to be safe after the dive liveaboard Philippine Siren 2 ran aground in the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park yesterday (14 June), prompting a response from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and marine park authorities.
According to the PCG the vessel had not been underway at the time but was moored to an anchored buoy when it was pushed aground by a sudden squall. The location was given as “7.2 nautical miles north-east of Tubbataha Reef”.
The PCG received an emergency call at about 5am and dispatched a response team aboard a ranger-station patrol boat. It confirmed that the 14 divers and 14 Filipino crew from Philippine Siren 2 had all been rescued safely.
All the guests, reported to be nine Americans, three Germans and two Filipinos, and four of the crew were transferred to the nearby liveaboard Resolute, another dive-vessel operating in Tubbataha. The other 10 crew-members remained onboard the grounded Philippine Siren 2.
The rescued divers and crew were taken to Puerto Princesa City in Palawan, the usual embarkation point for Tubbataha liveaboards about 150km away.
Marine sanctuary
Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, a remote, protected marine sanctuary in the Sulu Sea, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Spanning almost 1,000sq km, it is renowned for its coral walls, high levels of biodiversity and pelagic marine life and is one of the Philippines’ most important marine-conservation areas.
The 40m ironwood-hulled Philippine Siren 2 is a purpose-built phinisi-style dive-boat built to accommodate up to 16 guests.
Part of the Master Liveaboards fleet, it operates expeditions to Tubbataha during the park’s annual diving season, which runs from mid-March to mid-June and coincides with the region’s calmest seas and best underwater visibility.
The weather becomes less predictable as the south-west monsoon approaches, and the incident occurred near the end of the annual diving season, shortly before the park’s seasonal closure.
Although no fuel leakage or oil spill was reported, a precautionary containment boom was deployed around the vessel while authorities maintained what the Coast Guard described as “strict surveillance” to protect marine resources.
“Co-ordination is also ongoing with the owner of the motor yacht and the Tubbataha Management Office for the salvage operation to be conducted,” it added.
An assessment of the vessel’s condition was underway and further details, including the results of the official investigation into the circumstances that led to the grounding and any findings regarding environmental damage, are expected once Coast Guard and park management inspections are complete.
In April 2023 the dive liveaboard DreamKeeper sank during a squall near Tubbataha, resulting in four fatalities.
