Sangihe Islands, North Sulawesi. Seven Philippine nationals were taken into custody after becoming stranded on Mahengetang Island in the Sangihe Islands Regency, North Sulawesi, without valid travel documents, local police said on Tuesday.

The seven were part of a group of eight people traveling aboard a pakura, a small pump boat commonly used in the southern Philippines. The other person on board was an Indonesian national.

The boat had been adrift for three days after encountering extreme weather in waters off Sulawesi. The roughly 6-meter vessel eventually changed course and headed for Mahengetang Island, where the group landed early Tuesday to seek safety.

The seven Filipinos were identified as Kristan Kit M Juan, Badik Gosila, Omar Abas, Dave Pipon, Winilfredo Eve, Edwin, and Cerelo Conipin.

Tamako Police subsequently took them in for questioning.

The group’s sole Indonesian member, Steven Rasubala, said they had departed General Santos in the Philippines on the night of Aug. 21 and planned to travel to Bitung, North Sulawesi, to work as tuna fishermen.

However, deteriorating sea conditions forced them to abandon their planned journey.

“High waves and storms forced us to look for the nearest land to save ourselves,” Steven said.

During an initial inspection, authorities found tuna fishing equipment and six 30-liter fuel containers aboard the vessel, two of which were empty.

Officials said they found no suspicious items or activities indicating other criminal offenses. Their preliminary findings suggest the case involves a minor immigration-related administrative violation because the seven Philippine nationals did not possess valid immigration documents.

The group was temporarily accommodated at a resident’s home on the island while authorities determined further steps in the case.

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