Despite Tropical Storm Carina battering Northern Luzon, Francisco Olisima, 45, set out to sea Sunday morning hoping to for a big catch to earn money for his family in Lingayen, Pangasinan.
He expected various kinds of fishes and large squid.
Luck must have been on his side, because after two hours Francisco and his colleagues were reeling in what seemed like a net full of fish.
The waves were bigger than usual, but Francisco and his colleagues decided to set sail anyway.
“Kaya pa naman, hindi masyadong malakas at malaki ang mga alon,” he said.
Back on shore, the father of five pulled the net in with the help of his neighbors and his son Giovanni, 12. At the end of the net, about 100 meters away, another group of fishermen also helped pull the catch in.
Smiling, Francisco told GMA News Online that they might have a big catch today.
Their last big catch was in January, when he earned P500. There were some days, Francisco added, when he would earn only P20.
The group started pulling the fishing net at around 10 a.m. and despite heavy rains continued with their task until 1 p.m.
That was when the children gathered started getting excited and shouted, “Isda! isda!,” holding up small sapsap fish as the fish net came alive with its live catch.
It was indeed a good day for the men; they were able to collect three large baskets of various kinds of fish, including several espada, or sword fish, that Francisco sold at P150 apiece to individuals milling around them.