Philippines blames China for starved, dehydrated sailors at Sabina Shoal

After five months at sea, exhausted sailors were seen leaving the vessel on stretchers upon its arrival at a port in Palawan on Sunday. Philippine coastguard spokesman Jay Tarriela reported that several crew members suffered from extreme fatigue and gastroenteritis after being forced to drink rainwater and subsist on porridge for over three weeks as supplies dwindled.

While the previous resupply operation had gone smoothly, another attempt on August 26 was met with a swarm of Chinese coastguard and navy vessels, forcing Manila to abort the mission. Although essential supplies were later airdropped, they were insufficient to alleviate the crew’s suffering.

Despite the withdrawal, Tarriela insisted that it did not mean Manila was giving up its claims over the area. “We have not lost anything. We can still patrol and maintain our presence in Escoda Shoal,” he said, using the Filipino name for the reef. “We are going to sustain our presence in these waters” by sending another ship to the shoal, he added but he declined to provide specifics on the protection of the mission’s integrity, as reported by The Manila Bulletin.