By ANTHONY IAN CRUZ
January 15, 2008

A day after the repatriation of the body of a Filipino seaman who died due to an attack by Nigerian militants last month, the Department of Foreign Affairs reported on Monday that another set of 21 Filipino seamen have been rescued when their ship caught fire last Friday (Jan. 11).

In a report to the DFA, Ambassador Abuja Masaranga said that the 21 crew members of M/T Golden Lucy are “all safe and currently billeted in a local hotel”.

DFA spokesman Claro Cristobal did not identify the 21 skippers.

Cristobal said the nature of the fire that hit M/T Golden Lucy in Port Harcourt is now being investigated.

“A consular assistance team from the embassy is en route to Port Harcourt to assist in the repatriation of the Filipino seamen,” Cristobal added.

The body of seaman Vito S. Cruz, the lone casualty in an attack by militant gunmen also in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, was repatriated Sunday and turned over by government officials to his family.

Cruz’s 18 colleagues who survived the attack that hit in M/T Keno were repatriated a week earlier.