Some of the Filipino seafarers who are now home safe after their civilian vessel was hit by a Russian missile in the Black Sea shared their ordeal and urged the government for assistance.
Fourteen of the 25 Filipino seamen arrived in Manila on Saturday, with the Department of Migrant Workers and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) welcoming and providing them with medical assessments and financial assistance.
But Jovanny Perez, the ship’s second officer, appealed to the government for aid as he talked about the horrors of their experience.
“We are calling on the government to give us aid because most of us are still under contract. For Filipino seafarers, as much as possible, I urge you to refrain from sailing in war zone areas,” Perez said in Filipino.
Perez recalled that he was very close to the explosion.
“I still dream about it frequently. My dreams are different every night, but they have a common element, a missile hitting our ship,” he said.
Arnel Lopez said he sustained injuries and remembered how a crew member perished in the blast when the vessel was struck by a Russian missile in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Pivdennyi last month.
“‘I was assisting the pilot then suddenly something exploded. He died,” Lopez said in an interview with ABS-CBN news.
The Filipino captain shared about getting scared because of what happened.
“We were so afraid. My face was wounded by shattered glass. My back also hurts until now. And sometimes I feel my ears are going deaf,” he said. Rey E. Requejo
The war between Russia and Ukraine has dragged since 2014, but the armed conflict intensified in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine and the latter fighting back.
Since then, heavy casualties have been reported from both sides by open sources, and millions also reportedly displaced.