BFAR 8 urges the public to report any illegal fishing activities within the waters of Eastern Visayas through the FPLEG 8 Hotline 0956 432 9955.

Four (4) small and medium scale Commercial Fishing Vessels (CFVs) using Modified Danish Seine (Hulbot-Hulbot) were apprehended within the municipal waters of Homonhon Island in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, Calbayog and Catbalogan City in Samar during the three-day joint seaborne operation of the Fisheries Protection and Law Enforcement Group (FPLEG) 8 Carigara, Leyte and Victoria, Northern Samar substations in collaboration with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Carigara Substation, Philippine National Police (PNP) Maritime Group Eastern Samar and Philippine Navy on April 20-22, 2023.

Said CFVs intercepted by the apprehending officers are allegedly owned by residents of Placer, Surigao Del Norte, Daram, Catbalogan City, and Calbayog City in Samar. These fishery law offenders violated several sections of the amended Fisheries Code of the Philippines which include unauthorized fishing, use of fine mesh nets, use of active gear in municipal waters, bays and other fishery management areas. They have also violated the Fisheries Administrative Order (FAO) 246-1 series of 2018 amending FAO 246 on the Banning of the Operation of Danish Seine in Philippine Waters.

Further, the apprehending officers discovered that one of these CFVs has been subjected to several hot pursuits of the FPLEG 8 in July 2021, February, and April 2023. Fortunately, it has been caught this time during the joint operation of BFAR 8, PNP Maritime Group E. Samar and Philippine Navy.

A total of 282 kilograms of assorted fish were seized from the CFVs and donated to Allen District Hospital in Allen, Northern Samar, Local Government Unit (LGU) of Carigara and SOS Childrens Village in Diit, Tacloban City for proper disposition. Apprehending officers thereafter impounded the CFVs’ 950-meter-long fish nets, 5,350 meter-long scarelines, and three (3) units of tom weights at the BFAR facility for safekeeping. The CFVs were also towed and impounded at the BFAR FPLEG 8 Substations for further inspection. To date, apprehending officers are gathering the necessary documents for the filing of appropriate cases.

BFAR 8 urges the public to report any illegal fishing activities within the waters of Eastern Visayas through the FPLEG 8 Hotline 0956 432 9955. For more information about BFAR 8’s campaign against IUUF activities in Eastern Visayas, you may visit its official website https://region8.bfar.da.gov.ph/.