Nearly 700 Filipino seafarers repatriated from Germany —DFA

A total of 690 repatriated Filipino seafarers from Frankfurt, Germany arrived in the Philippines on Saturday amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

In a statement, the DFA said the repatriation of the Filipino seafarers, composed of 115 from AIDAaura, AIDAcara, and AIDAmar and 575 from AIDAnova, AIDAmira, and AIDAstela, was facilitated by the Philippine Consulate General in Frankfurt.

The repatriation was also coordinated by the Philippine Embassy in Berlin, Philippine Consulate General in Frankfurt, Philippine Overseas Labor Office-Berlin (POLO-Berlin), Magsaysay Maritime Corporation, and shipping company AIDA Cruises.

So far, the DFA has repatriated over 19,000 Filipino crew members due to the pandemic.

Latest data from the DFA showed that a total of 1,819 Filipinos abroad have tested positive for COVID-19, including 214 deaths and 475 recoveries. —LDF,GMA News