Coast guard men rescued 15 Filipinos and 4 South Koreans who abandoned a Panamanian-registered cargo ship that lost power then sank in rough waters Monday in the central Philippines, officials said. The M/V Hera, which was en route to China from Papua New Guinea with a cargo of logs, encountered engine trouble, lost power then sank off Eastern Samar province early Monday. All its crewmembers managed to escape in a life boat, which was later spotted by coast guard rescuers, coast guard chief Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said. A Hong Kong maritime accident monitoring center asked the local coast guard to start a search and rescue after receiving a distress call from the 4,189-ton Hera, Tamayo was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
