2 Korean tourists drown in mishap

Two South Korean women drowned and 20 others were rescued when their boat capsized while en route to a resort in Boracay last Friday afternoon, the Coast Guard said.

The fatalities, Kim Hyeong Kae, 36, and Yoo Ok Soon, 37, were with 17 other South Korean tourists, two of them children aged four and five, and three crewmen of the motorboat Linarie when the mishap happened off Sitio Tabon in Caticlan, Aklan.

The group was halfway through the trip to Boracay when big waves battered their boat, according to Vice Admiral Reuben Lista, Coast Guard commandant.

The two fatalities reportedly failed to jump overboard and were trapped under the boat. They were pronounced dead at the Caticlan Baptist Hospital.

One of the fatalities was said to be pregnant, but authorities could not immediately identify who of the two.

The survivors are at present staying in lodges in Caticlan after undergoing medical check- ups.

Coast Guard authorities in Caticlan said the sea was moderate when the boat, owned by one Charlie Villanueva, sailed to Boracay. — Nestor Etolle, Sheila Crisostomo