Five Filipino fishermen who were rescued by Vietnamese border guards in waters of the central coastal province of Phu Yen are expected to go home next week as the official procedures are underway.

Bui Tien Loi from the provincial external relations bureau said that the Filipino Embassy has contacted the local administration to help with the paperwork to bring their citizens home.

The provincial People’s Committee has ordered the external relations department to speed up the procedure and work with the Filipino embassy to get the five Filipinos home as soon as possible.

Deputy Chief of Staff of the provincial Border Guard Force, Major Huynh Van Dinh, said that the five distressed Filipinos were taken to the Hong Hai hotel in Tuy Hoa City after being rescued.

The five fishermen were found in distress on January 30 and rescued by a fishing boat captained by Le Con, a resident of Tuy Hoa, who had instantly contacted the provincial border guards to take the victims ashore for medical treatment./.