Twenty-one fastcraft passengers were stranded for five hours in waters off an islet in Cebu City after the vessel’s engine malfunctioned at past 7 a.m. on Wednesday.

The Weesam Express 3 which came from Tagbilaran City had an engine failure near Lawis Ledge across the South Road Properties in Cebu.

According to Commander Dionelet Ampil of the Coast Guard in Cebu, the vessel left Tagbilaran City at 5:45 a.m.

Passengers were rescued by Lite Tug 1, a tug boat owned by the Lite Shipping Company, which pulled the vessel to the Cebu Port at 12 p.m.

According to reports, there were no available tugboats immediately after Weesam 3’s engine malfunctioned.

There were no reported injuries during the incident.

Meanwhile, authorities are set to investigate the cause of the engine trouble. (Allen Doydora)